These homemade air fryer chicken nuggets are healthy enough for toddlers and delicious enough for you to eat alongside with them!
Hi friends, I’m popping in to share with you a recipe I’ve been making for the last few months for KJ using the air fryer!
These homemade air fryer chicken nuggets have a secret ingredient, sweet potato! Not only does the sweet potato help stretch the meat a little farther, but it also helps get in a bit more nutrition for KJ. Did I mention they are coated in ground-up simple mills almond flour crackers? The best! (PS I get my almond flour crackers at Costco, but if you don’t have a Costco membership, you could use any healthy cracker.)
When I serve these, I consider the combo food with protein and starch, so I add a veggie, and I’m done!
I haven’t even told you the best part about these yet. They are freezer-friendly, as all chicken nuggets should be, right?
What I usually do is make two batches at once. I cook the first batch and freeze the second batch. To freeze the second batch, I place them on a sheet pan to freeze uncooked in the freezer, then transfer them to a freezer-safe bag once they are frozen. Then you can pop these bad boys directly in the air fryer from frozen, awesome, right?!?! I think so every time I make just 5-6 for KJ to eat the next couple of days!
So let’s make these crunchy, golden brown bliss nuggets, shall we?
How to Make Homemade Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets
So the first thing you’ll do is grind up your crackers and then set them aside to use as coating later. Next goes in the sweet potato. You want one large one or two small ones, enough to make about a cup of diced sweet potato.
Then you’ll add in your remaining ingredients, from chicken nuggets, and cook or freeze. See how simple these are? It’s AMAZING! The majority of your time will be spent forming and dipping the chicken nuggets, but it’s worth it, I promise!
Note – I don’t use extra salt. The coating is salty enough for a toddler. For an adult, though, they are a bit bland without the salt, so your choice! My hubby and I help ourselves to plenty of these chicken nuggets even without the salt, so they are good either way in our opinion!
Homemade Air Fryer Sweet Potato Chicken Nuggets
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole grain crackers I used simple mills almond flour crackers
- 1 sweet potato 1 cup
- 1 lb ground chicken 93% or 99%
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 cup oat flour
- 1/2 tsp salt Optional
Instructions
- Add crackers to a food processor and grind into a coarse flour. Remove from food processor and set aside in a medium-size bowl. Add sweet potato to the food processor and pulse until the sweet potato is diced.
- Add in ground chicken, oat flour, and seasonings to the sweet potato. Turn on the food processor and let it combine in the ingredients (you do not need to pulse.) You may need to scrape down the sides and turn back on once, but I usually don't need to.
- Using 2-3 tablespoons of chicken mixture form oval or square chicken nugget shape, coat in ground crackers. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Once you have 12-16 chicken nuggets, preheat the air fryer to 360F.
- Once your air fryer is preheated, spray the tray with avocado oil. Add the chicken nuggets, then spray the top of them with more avocado oil. Cook for 16 minutes, turning each one over at the halfway mark.
To freeze uncooked chicken nuggets:
- Freeze the entire sheet pan of chicken nuggets. Once they are frozen, they can then be transferred to another storage container for the freezer. When you are ready to make them, preheat the air fryer to 360F.
- Once your air fryer is preheated, spray the tray with avocado oil. Add the chicken nuggets, then spray the top of them with more avocado oil. Cook for 18 minutes, turning each one over at the halfway mark.
To freeze cooked chicken nuggets:
- Cool in the refrigerator, then place chicken nuggets in a freezer container, like a freezer bag. You can microwave for 2 minutes to reheat or put them in the air fryer for 8-10 minutes.
No air fryer?
- Spray the top of the chicken nuggets with avocado oil and bake at 400F for 20-30 minutes, turning over at the 10-minute mark.
Nutrition
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Drooling!! Thanks Kelli Shallal for the step by step in detail “Homemade Air Fryer Sweet Potato Chicken Nuggets” recipe. Definitely going to share this delicious recipe with my colleagues. I Love everything and cannot wait to try your every recipes out.