Make Chicken Nuggets With Thighs Rather Than Breasts.
You don’t have to be young, or even young at heart, to appreciate chicken nuggets. At its best, these are tender, juicy pieces of chicken tucked into a well-seasoned, golden and crispy batter. At worst they are still pretty good. Nuggets and tenders are typically made with white meat, with tenders using the cut, but you can make better-tasting nuggets for less money by choosing thighs over breasts.
White meat isn’t much healthier anyway
As our health editor Beth Skwarecki previously explained , the differences in “health” between a sublime breast and a maligned hip are virtually negligible. To be healthy, you don’t have to deprive yourself of fats and taste, but the difference in calories is not that big:
A boneless, skinless chicken breast contains 142 calories, 3 grams of fat and 27 grams of protein. A boneless, skinless chicken thigh contains 206 calories, 10 grams of fat and an almost identical 28 grams of protein. The difference is only 64 calories.
Very few people’s lives are changed by just 64 calories. Plus, you’ll be deep frying—now is not the time to worry about calories. (I never do, but it’s especially inappropriate now.)
Dark meat tastes better
Breasts can be great, but this is where you have to give credit to guys with legs. Even if you remove the bones and skin from a chicken thigh, you’ll still be left with a better piece of meat. Breasts are almost pure protein with very little connective tissue or fat; thighs contain three times more fat and collagen, which turns into silky gelatin. All this results in a juicier nugget or strip that is less likely to dry out when frying, which is exactly what you want if you’re deep frying at home.
The thighs can be used with any chicken nugget recipe.
Just add them, pound by pound, cutting the thigh meat into nugget-sized pieces or tenders, and then continue with the recipe as usual. You’ll save at least a dollar per pound, if not more. You may need to trim off any extra large pieces of fat, but don’t worry about the small pieces. I like to use my Chick-fil-A copycat recipe , which has MSG in the brine and batter for extra kick.
The best chicken nuggets made from thighs
Ingredients:
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into small pieces
For the brine:
- 3 tablespoons fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon monosodium glutamate
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
For breading:
- Mayonnaise
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon fine sea salt
- 2 1/2 teaspoons MSG
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
For frying:
- Refined peanut or vegetable oil
Mix salt, MSG, sugar, garlic and paprika in one bowl using a whisk. Sprinkle the nuggets with four teaspoons of the seasoning, toss to coat evenly, and let sit on a wire rack set over a plate for 15 minutes. (Save the rest of the brine for future nuggets.)
After 15 minutes, blot any excess moisture from the chicken. Combine all breading ingredients except mayonnaise in a medium bowl. Brush the chicken with mayonnaise before tossing it into the flour mixture. Pour enough oil into a Dutch oven (or other high-sided Dutch oven) to rise about three inches, but still leave about three inches of space until it reaches the top of the vessel. (This will prevent the oil from spreading when you add the nuggets.) Heat the oil to 370℉ and while you wait for it to heat, toss the nuggets into the flour mixture again.
Once the oil reaches the target temperature, dredge the nuggets in flour again and then carefully lower them into the hot oil, working in batches if necessary. Let them cook for 3-5 minutes until they are a nice golden color. Fish them out with a slotted spoon or spider and let them cool on paper towels. Serve immediately with your favorite sauce.