Chick Fil A Chicken Nuggets (Copycat Recipe)

Copycat Chick Fil A chicken nuggets are an authentic tasting version of the fast food classic right at home. These delicious nugget make a perfect make ahead freezer meal so you will have lunch and dinner ready to go whenever you need it!

 

This post may contain affiliate links. As an amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. See my full Disclosure Policy for details.

Ah chicken nuggets.

One of the sons’ favorites.

And if I’m being honest one of my favorites too.

Especially when we are talking about Chick Fil A chicken nuggets.

They are hands down the best.

And now you can make an easy copycat version right at home for a fraction of the price on any day of the week.

Even Sundays!

And these nuggets are the perfect make ahead meal and freeze beautifully so they will help keep your home running smoothly- like a Chick Fil A drive through.

At least, in theory.

Ingredients

To make these nuggets you’ll need:

• Chicken breasts– Boneless skinless breasts cut into small equal sized pieces
• Dill pickle juice– To marinate the chicken in. Just use the stuff in the dill pickle jar.
• Buttermilk– You can sub regular milk if needed but buttermilk really does make the nuggets nice and tender.
• Flour– All purpose for dredging
• Bread crumbs– Plain
• Sugar– Powdered
• Spices– Garlic powder, salt, paprika, and black pepper
• Baking powder
• Peanut Oil – To fry the nuggets in. While you can use another frying oil, like canola or vegetable, peanut oil is what Chick Fil A uses and will give you the most authentic flavor.

How to Make

To make copycat Chick Fil A chicken nuggets, start by marinading the chicken pieces with pickle juice and milk in a large ziplocking bag.

Seal the bag and squish it together to combine the ingredients and then refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes, but up to two hours.

When you are ready to cook the chicken nuggets, add peanut oil to a large heavy bottomed skillet until it’s about 1″ deep.

Heat until the oil reaches 350° and use a cooking thermometer to check.

While the oil heats, whisk the flour, bread crumbs, sugar, garlic powder, paprika, salt, baking powder, and pepper together in bowl.

Set it aside while you drain the liquid off the chicken.

Then add each piece of marinated chicken to the breading mixture and turn it to coat evenly and fully.

Carefully add the coated chicken nuggets in batches to the hot oil in the skillet.

Cook the chicken for 3-5 minutes, turning as needed, until the chicken nuggets are crispy and a nice golden brown.

Using tongs, or a slotted spoon, transfer the crispy nuggets to a paper towel lined plate to drain off excess grease.

Continue frying until all the chicken nuggets have been cooked.

Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauces, and enjoy!

How to Freeze Homemade Chicken Nuggets

To freeze these copycat Chick Fil A chicken nuggets, make a big batch and let cool completely.

Then, transfer the cooled nuggets to a freezer safe bag and freeze.

They can be frozen up to three months.

Reheating Frozen Chicken Nuggets

You can reheat them in the oven or the air fryer.

To reheat them in the oven put them in a single layer on baking sheet and bake at 375 for 15 minutes.

You could also air fry them at 375 for 8-12 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through.

How To Quickly Make A Buttermilk Substitute

Buttermilk isn’t something I keep on hand, and usually when I realize I need it is in the middle of a recipe when a quick errand isn’t an option.

Luckily, you can make a buttermilk substitute quickly and easily with just milk and white vinegar.

Any milk will work as long as it’s not skim.

Fill up a one cup measuring cup with milk, then remove exactly one tablespoon of milk.

Add one tablespoon of vinegar to the measuring cup, and give it a quick stir to combine.

Let the mixture sit on the counter at room temperature for 10 minutes, or until thickened & curdled.

Use it, as instructed.

If you don’t have white vinegar, you can also use lemon juice.

Tips and Tricks

• For authentic flavor- peanut oil is a must, however you could sub canola or vegetable oil.
• Don’t skip any of the ingredients. I know the powdered sugar and pickle juice may not immediately seem like something that would go in a chicken nugget recipe, but trust me they lend authenticity to the flavor and make these the juiciest nuggets ever!
• While I highly recommend buttermilk, if you don’t have it, you could use whole milk instead.

Other Copycat Chick Fil A Recipes

Whenever we want a fast food feast at home, these copycat Chick Fil A nuggets are on our menu!

Make them and enjoy!

Looking for other copycat Chick Fil A recipes?

Try these:

• Copycat Chick Fil A Frosted Lemonade
• Copycat Chick Fil A Chicken Sandwich
• Copycat Chick Fil A Peach Milkshakes
• Chick Fil A Mac & Cheese Recipe

If you’ve tried this COPYCAT CHICK FIL A CHICKEN NUGGETS, or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!

This post may contain affiliate links. As an amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. See my full Disclosure Policy for details.