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Copycat Chick-Fil-A Nuggets are tender and juicy bits of chicken, perfectly seasoned and fried. These copy cat nuggets will quickly become a family favorite!
Chick-Fil-A Nuggets Recipe
For the longest time we didn’t have a Chick-Fil-A where I live. And when one was finally built, I couldn’t wait to see what all the fuss was about. So we went, and after waiting in the biggest drive through line I’ve ever been in, I got my nuggets.
Let me just say, it lived up to ALL the hype, and more! (No one had told me about the Lemonade! And I have a love all all things Lemonade)
But here is the crazy thing, Chick-Fil-A has now been here for years, and the line is STILL always bonkers, and it isn’t exactly cheap to feed my small army! So I had to create a copy cat recipe. And this recipe my friends is PERFECT! You can even make my Lemonade recipe for a more authentic experience! If you like this copycat recipe, you’ve got to try this Copycat KFC Famous Bowl Recipe.
Ingredients in Chick-Fil-A Nuggets
- Chicken Breast- Cut into bite size pieces for the nuggets.
- Pickle Juice- This ingredient is KEY. It is used to brine the chicken and really gives Chick-Fil-A nuggets their signature flavor!
- Egg- Using an egg to dredge the chicken gives the nuggets the perfect texture.
- Flour- AP flour will do the trick.
- Corn Starch- This will help with added texture when we fry the nuggets
- Salt
- Garlic Powder
- Onion Powder
- Pepper
- Paprika
- Seasoned Salt
- Oil for frying- Peanut oil is ideal, but if you don’t have any canola oil is a good substitute. You’ll just want to make sure that the oil you use has a high smoke point.
How To Make Chick-Fil-A Nuggets
Start by brining the chicken. Cut the chicken breasts into bite size pieces and place them in an airtight container or a zip bag. Soak your chicken nuggets for 2-3 hours. This will add tons of flavor to the chicken, but it will also keep the chicken moist and tender when it cooks. Don’t skip this step!
When your chicken is done marinating, whisk an egg into a small bowl and set aside. In a large bag, combine all the breading ingredients and shake to mix.
A few pieces at a time, dip the chicken into the egg mixture and place them in the breading. Zip the bag shut and shake to coat the nuggets completely.
Remove the chicken pieces from the bag and place on a cookie sheet. Then repeat with the remaining chicken.
Heat your oil over medium heat until it reaches 350 degrees. You will want to keep the oil between 300 and 350 degrees while frying so having a thermometer for the oil really comes in handy.
When the oil is ready, fry your nuggets until they are golden brown and the internal temp reaches 165 degrees. This should take approximately 5-10 minutes. Depending on how much oil you are using you may need to flip the nuggets half way through.
Once the nuggets are cooked through, remove from the oil and allow them to cool for 5 minutes before digging in!
How to make Chick-Fil-A Nuggets in the Air Fryer
You can make these in the air fryer, they won’t be quite the same but still delicious! Just spray your basket with olive oil, and then cook for a total of 10 minutes at 350°, shaking the basket and spraying with more olive oil halfway through. Then finish them off for 2 minutes at 400° for extra crisp! Check doneness with an instant read thermometer, it should read at least 165°.
How to store Leftover Chick-Fil-A Nuggets
Store your leftover nuggets in the fridge for up to 3 days. If you have a lot leftover, you could definitely freeze them and make your own freezer chicken nuggets!
How to reheat Chick-Fil-A Nuggets
If you have an air fryer on hand, definitely use that to reheat your nuggets to crispy perfection! If they are just cold from the fridge, 4 minutes at 400° should do the trick. You’ll be looking at 8-10 minutes at 400° from frozen though.
If you don’t have an air fryer, you can heat them in the microwave or in the oven to make them a little crispier. In the oven, bake them at 400° for 10-15 minutes, or until heated through.
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More Fun Copy Cat Recipes
- Little Caesar’s Breadsticks
- Red Lobster Biscuits
- Dot’s Pretzels
- Coconut Lime Sugar Cookies
- Crumbl Sugar Cookies
Copycat Chick-Fil-A Nuggets
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
- 1 cup pickle juice
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
- Peanut Oil, for frying
Instructions
- Cut up the chicken breasts into bite sized pieces. Add them to an air tight container or bag with the pickle juice. Allow them to soak for 2-3 hours.
- Once your chicken is done marinating, whisk the egg in a small bowl and in a large baggie, combine all of the breading ingredients.
- A few chicken pieces at a time, dredge in the egg and then put it into the breading baggie.
- Zip the baggie shut and then shake to coat the chicken.
- Remove from the baggie and set on a cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining chicken.
- Heat your peanut oil over medium high heat until it reaches 350°. You'll want to keep your oil around 300°-350° the entire time you are frying, so keep your instant read thermometer handy and adjust your heat accordingly.
- Fry your chicken nuggets until they are golden brown the internal temp reads 165°. This should take about 5-10 minutes to fry. Depending on how deep your oil is, you may need to flip your chicken nuggets halfway through.
- Allow the chicken nuggets to cool for 5 minutes before serving.
I absolutely can’t wait to try this out, especially since we have a Chik-Fil-A around the corner, which prompts a request almost daily for dinner or lunch there from both of my kids. Since we’re not made of money, that doesn’t happen as often as would be desired by the younger “tenants” from this household, this should do the trick. Before I dive and make their lives, and let’s face it, my life a lot better, what seasoned salt did you use? I have Lawry’s in the cupboard, but want to make sure there isn’t a different one that will work with this recipe best.
Lawry’s is what I always use. 🙂 I hope you and your kiddos love them!
Hello. What kind of pickle juice, kosher or dill? Gotta try this soon!
Dill. 🙂
👍 Thank you!
This recipe was fantastic!