No fast food is as crave-worthy as a pile of Chick Fil A Nuggets. When you want the yummy goodness of your favorite fast food, but without the expense, make our homemade copycat Chick Fil A Nuggets recipe at home. Like my Chick Fil A Chicken Tortilla soup, it is a great copycat recipe!
Why This Recipe
Taste. These delicious nuggets are crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside, these nuggets are perfectly seasoned with a crispy coating.
Cost. While popping into the drive-thru on a busy day is easy, it is not the cheapest option. Especially as fast food places prices continue to rise. Homemade chicken nuggets made at home is usually the most cost-effective option. This copycat recipe is a perfect way to save money.
Nutrition. Restaurant food is also not the best for your body. Making your food at home with simple ingredients allows you to control what you put in your body and limit preservatives. It also allows you to make the nuggets gluten-free or peanut-free but still get the same effect.
Scale. You can make as many as you need or want when you make our Chick Fil A nuggets at home. Easily scale this chicken nugget recipe to match the size of your crowd.
Equipment Needed for This Recipe
Deep Pan or Deep Fryer. You can make this recipe with a deep pan and oil. You do not have to have a deep fryer.
Spider. This is a four-inch slotted scoop for removing food from hot oil.
Mixing Bowls. You will need a couple. One for soaking the meat in buttermilk and one for the breading mixture.
Ingredients for Homemade Chick Fil A Nuggets
- Flour. All-purpose flour works fine. If you need to make the nuggets gluten-free, try your favorite all-purpose one-for-one gluten-free flour.
- Paprika.
- Salt.
- Cracked Black Pepper. Freshly cracked pepper is the best pepper.
- Baking Soda. For just a little bit of rise in the breading.
- Buttermilk. Nothing tenderizes chicken or adds as much flavor to breaded chicken as a dip in buttermilk.
- Vegetable or Peanut Oil. Chick Fil A is famous for using peanut oil. While vegetable oil will change the flavor slightly, it is still a perfectly good option.
How to Make Chick Fil A Nuggets at Home
The full recipe instructions for this recipe are in the recipe card below, but here is a step by step overview of the recipe
Take each of the chicken breasts and cut them in half from top to bottom so that you have nice thin bite-sized pieces. This allows you to keep the nuggets more uniform. The chicken will cook faster this way as well. Dice the chicken into ½" pieces. Soak the chicken pieces in milk mixture and salt for about an hour in the refrigerator to allow it to tenderize.
Preheat your oil to 350ºF. An instant-read thermometer is a big help to get your oil to the right temp.
Add flour, paprika, salt, baking soda, and cracker pepper to another bowl.
Stir flour mixture with a fork or whisk and coat each piece of chicken in the mixture.
Fry each piece in a single layer for three to five minutes.
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Pro Tip
Try to get all of your pieces of chicken roughly the same size. This allows them to cook at the same exact rate.
More Tips for Best Results
We recommend that you fry no more than eight nuggets at once to keep the oil temperature steady.
Make sure your chicken soaks in buttermilk for at least one hour.
Do not overcook the chicken. The coating should be golden brown and will go from perfect to burned or hard pretty quickly. Cook until internal temperature reaches 165 f.
Keep an eye on your oil temperature and lower the heat as necessary to keep a steady temperature. If your oil is too hot, it will burn your breading.
Recipe FAQs
Store leftover copycat chick-fil nuggets in an airtight container in the refrigerator for one or two days. Freeze leftover nuggets for up to three months. Reheat nuggets in the microwave or a hot skillet
Pair with favorite dipping sauce, like this homemade honey mustard sauce or buttermilk ranch dressing.
Homemade french fries or waffle fries work really well with this recipe.
Other Great Chicken Recipe Ideas
📖 Recipe
Chick Fil A Nuggets Copycat Recipe
Equipment
- Deep Pan or Deep Fryer
- spider or slotted spoon
- medium bowl
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 2 tablespoons paprika
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 2 tablespoon baking soda
- 3 cups buttermilk
- Vegetable or Peanut oil for frying Note: chick fil a uses peanut oil
Instructions
- Cut chicken breast lengthwise in half. This makes the chicken thinner when you have bigger breast and it allows to make the right size chunks. Now cut each piece into pieces. Cubes should be under ½ inch or smaller.
- In a bowl, add chicken pieces and buttermilk. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Place in fridge for about an hour.
- In another bowl, add in flour, paprika, salt, baking soda, and cracker pepper. Whisk. Place a few pieces of chicken at a time into the batter. Toss and coat each piece of chicken well. Place on a dish.
- Heat oil in deep pan to 350 degrees F. Use a thermometer as this really helps. With a spider(metal strainer spoon) place in 8 pieces of chicken nuggets at a time. Fry till golden for about 3 to 5 minutes. Do not add more than 8 pieces at a time as it will drop the oil temperature and chicken won't cook correctly.
- Place each batch into a bowl. Serve when complete with waffles fries.
Nutrition
I hop you enjoyed this chicken nuggets recipe
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Tamara
Such a good tip about getting them the same size so they cook evenly! I've never had the real deal, but I'm all about this copycat recipe!
Linda Primmer
Thanks for sharing. I love Chick fil A. The nuggets are so tender and easy to eat. I shall be making these babies soon. Happy New Year.
Donna Powell
I am all about this recipe! Love them but not the price. These are also my daughter in laws favorite but she doesn't have a Chick-fil-A close to her house. I will be sharing this recipe with her. Thanks for sharing the recipe. This post will be a feature this week.
#HomeMattersParty
Raquel
Thanks so much Donna! What a wonderful surprise!