Thursday, May 13, 2010

From Scratch Chicken Nuggets

Instead of relying on high priced, processed chicken tenders, I've been making my own for my kids. I make them in bulk and then freeze them in my deep freeze still on the cookie sheets. After they are frozen I move them to a ziptop freezer storage bag and pull out a few to cook for lunch occasionally. I tend to reheat them in my toaster oven, but however you reheat prepared chicken tenders will work too. The entire batch (family size package of chicken) took me about 45 minutes of prep time (although I was cooking mashed potatoes in that time too.) They take about 25 minutes to make in addition to the prep time.
-Amanda

From Scratch Chicken Nuggets

1 large package of chicken thighs
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
2-3 inches of the end of a loaf of homemade loaf of bread (or about 2.5-3 cups bread crumbs
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried oregano
salt and pepper

Chicken Thighs. I trimmed the fat from each thigh. I've done this with chicken breasts too, which I prefer (I don't like dark meat!) But the chicken thighs are a bit cheaper, the higher fat is good for the kids and they don't dry out as easily as breast meat.

I cut them into lengths and then into 1" cubes.

1 bowl of chicken thighs. I bowl of 2 eggs and milk whisked. In the last bowl I pulsed my homemade bread in my magic bullet. Then I pulsed the coconut flakes and added them to the bread crumbs. Stir in the seasonings and you are set.

Dip the chicken pieces into the egg wash and then the bread crumbs and lay out on a cookie sheet that has been sprayed with oil. I put a handful of chicken in the eggs, then scooped them out, letting the egg drain away between my fingers. Then I tossed them in the bread crumbs to make it go faster. You want to dust off as much as the excess breadcrumb as you can. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes.

2 comments:

  1. I made these the other day. They were great! I used fresh thyme and added red pepper flakes. There was one problem with the recipe---They are so tasty they do not last long in the freezer!

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