Gluten Free Chicken Nuggets

If you’re looking for an easy and delicious gluten-free chicken nugget recipe, you’ve come to the right place! Heck, they’re so yummy, I can eat a whole plateful all by myself! Yup, I’ve finally nailed a nugget recipe that my kids love and I wholeheartedly approve of. 

What you’ll need to make these gluten-free nuggets

Chicken I especially like using chicken tenders as they are a good compromise between white breast meat and dark thigh meat. They are tender and juicy just as chicken nuggets are meant to be.

Gluten-free flours Because these nuggets are gluten-free we will be coating them with a blend of almond and tapioca flour. If you can’t find tapioca flour where you live, rice or arrowroot flour works just as well. 

Spices I like to keep it simple. Just salt, red chili powder, garlic powder, and if you have it on hand, dried oregano.

Eggs Whisked eggs in a bowl for a quick egg wash. 

Oil I like to shallow fry my nuggets in refined coconut oil or avocado oil because it can withstand high heat. Avoid using canola, corn, and other vegetable oils as they are highly processed and high in omega-6 fatty acids. 

Making the nuggets

Cut the chicken tenders into bite-sized pieces and season with all the spices. Cover and refrigerate while you prepare the coating. You can also refrigerate the chicken overnight if desired. 

Next, in a flat bowl, mix the gluten-free almond and tapioca flour and salt and set aside. In another bowl whip the eggs and set them next to the bowl of flour mix in an assembly line of sorts. 

Take the marinated nuggets and add a batch to the egg wash. Ensure that the chicken pieces are well coated and then drain any excess egg, and drop them into the flour mixture. 

Coat well with the flour mixture and if frying immediately, lay on a plate. Repeat with the rest of the chicken till all the nuggets are coated.

These nuggets can be air-fried or shallow-fried in neutral oil. Whichever way you cook them, they turn out crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside! 

Storing the chicken nuggets for easy meal prep

There are a couple of ways to make these gluten-free nuggets meal-prep-friendly:

Freeze raw: Once you have them coated in the egg and flour mix, simply lay them in a single layer on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and pop them in the freezer for 30 minutes. This helps the flour stick and get a little bit of a seal on them so that when you put them in an air-tight bag for storage, they don’t stick together. When ready to eat, simply take out of the freezer and air fry or pan fry till ready to eat.

Freeze cooked: If you’d rather cook your chicken nuggets first make sure they are thoroughly cooled off and then store them in a single layer in a freezer-safe bag. You can heat them in the oven once you’re ready to eat them. 

More chicken recipes to try:

Club Sandwiches

One Pan Sumac Chicken 

Chicken Quesadillas

I hope you try this recipe out! If you do, please let me know in the comments how it worked out for you! Or tag me on Instagram @eatdrinkpure. I love seeing you try out my recipes!