Burger King Chicken Nuggets (Copycat Recipe)

It’s not that I was searching for a recipe for a copycat of the Burger King chicken nuggets. I was looking for ANY great recipe for chicken nuggets. It didn’t have to be a BK knock-off (though that it is a plus). The nuggets just needed to be tender, juicy and flavorful. And not soggy. Oh, please, no soggy nuggets! Well, I got everything I wanted in these nuggets. I loved them. They’re my go-to nuggets from now on, that’s for sure! If I had checkboxes for what I wanted in chicken nuggets, these would check them.

Burger King Chicken Nuggets (Copycat Recipe)

Great From The Freezer, Too

I made this copycat recipe of Burger King chicken nuggets as part of a test. I wanted to see if it was possible to make great, tender chicken nuggets at home, freeze them and then reheat them later. They had to still be tasty and moist when I re-heated them. They had to be better than the frozen nuggets I can buy at the store. They had to be MUCH better, actually. And they were. These nuggets passed every test I had. I can now keep a big bag of pre-cooked homemade nuggets in my freezer, ready for lunch in just minutes. I just pop them into a preheated air fryer or oven for 10 minutes and boom! It’s time to eat!

Straying Or Staying

Want to change things up a bit? Substitute Italian bread crumbs for a little different flavor. Want to make something bigger than nuggets? Cut the chicken into thin strips, 2″-3″ in length first, and make chicken fingers instead!

The batter mixture is also great on fish or shrimp!

The Presto Fry Daddy is perfect for making smaller batches of food. It only uses a few cups of oil and comes to temperature quickly. Clean-up is easy too!

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It’s not illegal (as far as I know) to dip these nuggets in a copycat of Chick-fil-A’s sauce.

Copycat Burger King Chicken Nuggets
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5 from 1 vote

Copycat Burger King Chicken Nuggets

Reheat the nuggets in an air fryer or oven.
Course Appetizer or Main
Cuisine American
Keyword chicken nuggets
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 4
Calories 1030kcal

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Cut the chicken breast into bite-sized pieces.
  • In a large bowl, combine the flour, granulated garlic, salt and pepper.
  • Add in the chicken pieces and stir to coat well. I prefer to use my hands for this, ensuring that each and every piece is coated evenly in the mixture.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg and milk.
  • In another medium bowl, stir together the breadcrumbs and salt and pepper to taste.
  • Heat a few inches of oil to 350 F in a deep fryer or Dutch oven. While the oil is heating you can prepare the nuggets for frying.
  • Working in batches, remove the chicken pieces from the flour mixture and shake off any excess.
  • Transfer the chicken to the bowl containing the egg mixture. Turn the pieces to coat well.
  • Shake off any excess and transfer the chicken pieces to the bowl containing the breadcrumbs.
  • Turn the pieces to coat well. Get all sides.
  • Fry chicken pieces 2-3 minutes per side, turning once. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate or wire rack-lined baking sheet to drain.
  • Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.

Notes

These nuggets can be frozen and reheated at a later time. I put the frozen nuggets into an air fryer at 365 F for 10 minutes to reheat them.

Nutrition

Calories: 1030kcal | Carbohydrates: 131g | Protein: 78g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 338mg | Sodium: 3475mg | Potassium: 1312mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 437IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 325mg | Iron: 10mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

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KFC Chicken Nuggets (Copycat Recipe)

I admit, I’ve never had the chicken nuggets from Kentucky Fried Chicken. I’ve always been more of a give-me-a-bucket-of-crispy-fried-chicken kind of guy. And usually the hot-and-spicy chicken at that. Well, I have been missing out all of these years if this copycat recipe of the KFC chicken nuggets are even remotely the same as the original. I mean seriously, they’re great. Which begs the question: how many nuggets could you order in the drive-thru before they started to look at you in a strange way? With these little yummies over-indulging is expected. I’m sure they’ve had people order a huge number without even blinking an eye.

If you’re afraid of how they might look at you when you order 100 nuggets next time you’re in the drive-thru, fear not. You can make 100 (or more at home) in no time, actually.

KFC Chicken Nuggets (Copycat Recipe)

Great Flavor In The Perfect Size

I guess if you were making this copycat recipe of KFC chicken nuggets for kids you might leave out the cayenne. I could barely detect it. It was there, enough to add flavor and maybe a hint of spiciness, but certainly not enough to burn or make my eyes water. Heck, for my tastes I’ll probably add more next time! Like I said, I like to get the hot chicken at the restaurant. So it’s not unusual for me to like to make my nuggets hot too!

See You Tomorrow

These nuggets reheat really well, keeping their flavor and texture. That’s another great reason to make extra. Personally, I think they reheat best in an air fryer. It heats them up quickly and keeps that crunch.

I get out my big deep fryer when it’s time to fry a large batch of food. It comes to temperature quickly and it maintains that temperature perfectly. It has a built-in oil filter and storage unit so I can re-use the oil several times.

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Also try my KFC bean salad.

Copycat KFC Chicken Nuggets
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3.20 from 5 votes

KFC Chicken Nuggets (Copycat Recipe)

These nuggets are seriously great. Which begs the question: how many nuggets could you order in the drive-thru before they started to look at you in a strange way?
Course Appetizer or Main
Cuisine American
Keyword chicken nuggets, copycat, KFC
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings 2
Calories 321kcal

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Preheat oil to 350 F.
  • In a small bowl or pie plate, whisk together the flours, salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, cayenne and baking powder.
  • In another small bowl or pie plate, whisk together the egg, milk and hot sauce.
  • Working in batches, dip the chicken into the egg mixture, then into the flour mixture, and back into the egg mixture and again the flour mixture. Double dipping will get you that fantastic crunchy coating.
  • Fry for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a wire rack-lined baking sheet to drain and cool slightly before serving.

Notes

Serve with your favorite dipping sauce. Or sauces.

Nutrition

Calories: 321kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 169mg | Sodium: 1319mg | Potassium: 587mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 527IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 182mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutritional values are approximate.