Crispy baked chicken nuggets. It’s almost a weekly tradition where it’s around 4 pm in the afternoon and Lauren and I are texting each other trying to figure out what we want for dinner. Most of the time I end up picking something but I always bug Lauren to make the decision. And recently she did! Randomly she was craving chicken nuggets, so I scoured the internet for some ideas.
I’ve made chicken nuggets plenty of times in the past, but I always fried them. Wanting a slightly healthier alternative I decided to bake them instead. We weren’t disappointed by the results and satisfied a craving by Lauren on top of it.
It’s important to use panko bread crumbs as it gives the chicken a crunchier texture than regular bread crumbs would. You might almost forget that these are baked and you’re saving some extra calories! And I know I say this a lot, but these crispy baked chicken nuggets are super easy and can be made quickly. It would be great as an appetizer for a party or football game as well. BTW I also have a great crispy baked chicken wings recipe if you feel like wings instead of some nuggets. Enjoy!
These crispy chicken nuggets are baked instead of fried and are a great healthier option to the more famous fried counterpart.
- 1 lb boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1.5" pieces
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
Preheat oven to 450F. In a medium bowl, mix together the panko, cheese, salt, thyme, basil, garlic powder, paprika and black pepper. In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs.
Dip chicken into the egg mixture first, then coat with panko mixture. Place parchment paper on baking sheet and put the coated chicken in a single layer. Bake for 20 minutes, flipping halfway through. Serve immediately with a sauce of your choice.
