Craving crispy, flavorful chicken nuggets while maintaining a low-carb lifestyle? These keto chicken nuggets are the answer to your fast food desires! This easy recipe delivers succulent, tender meat encased in a tasty, crisp coating, with only 2.6g net carbs per serving. My entire family loves this recipe. It is ready in just over 30 minutes, satisfying and filling.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Low Carb Delight: Perfect for those following a ketogenic or low-carb diet.
- Family-Friendly: A hit with both kids and adults.
- Quick and Easy: Ready in just about 30 minutes.
- Versatile: Can be baked, air-fried, or pan-fried.
- Freezable: Great for meal prepping and future cravings.
The Secret Ingredient: Keto "Breadcrumbs"
The secret to these keto nuggets? My tried and tested almond flour "keto breadcrumbs". This mixture is packed with flavor and tastes just as good as traditional breadcrumb or panko coating. I make keto zucchini fries with these and even cauliflower popcorn.
Ingredients You'll Need
For the Chicken Nuggets:
- Chicken breast - It's the most tender meat of the chicken and best suited for nuggets. Make sure you remove the skin. You can also use minced chicken or cooked shredded chicken. If using canned chicken, open and drain it well, pressing out excess moisture.
- Egg
- Mozzarella cheese (optional)
- Onion powder
- Garlic powder
For the Coating:
- Almond flour - Both regular ground almonds or super fine almond flour work.
- Ground flaxseed - You can use regular or golden flax. Make sure it is fresh! I always keep ground flax in an airtight container in the freezer to ensure it does not oxidise and go bitter.
- Parmesan cheese - I grate it freshly just before using.
- Garlic powder
- Seasoning
- Optional Italian herbs
- Crushed pork rinds (optional, for extra crispiness)
Other:
- Olive oil - For drizzling or spraying.
- Avocado oil or coconut oil (for pan-frying)
Step-by-Step Instructions
These keto chicken nuggets are easily made in the air fryer, pan fried, or oven baked. Making keto chicken nuggets is surprisingly simple.
1. Prepare the Chicken
- Cut the chicken into 3-centimeter cubes. Stick to this size! (if using chicken breast). Or shape the chicken mixture into small nugget-sized portions and place them on a lined baking tray.
2. Set Up the Coating Stations
- Whisk the eggs with a fork and place in one shallow bowl.
- In the second bowl, mix the almond flour, ground flax, garlic powder, parmesan, seasoning and optional Italian herbs. For extra flavor, add a pinch of cayenne pepper or your favorite hot sauce to the egg mixture.
- If using canned chicken, In a medium-sized bowl, mix together all the ingredients until combined.
3. Coat the Chicken
- Dip each chicken piece in egg, shake off the excess then dip into the 'breadcrumb' mixture until it is coated everywhere. Do this in small batches of 3 - 4 nuggets at a time to prevent clumping. Wash your hands in-between if they get covered in batter.
4. Arrange and Drizzle
- Place on a baking tray and repeat until all the chicken is used up. Depending on the size of your trays, you'll need 1 or 2 trays. Drizzle with olive oil or generously spray.
5. Cooking Options
Oven Method:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. If using the oven method, do not use parchment paper to line the baking sheet.
- Bake for 15 minutes, then flip.
- Bake for 10 more minutes. Time varies with the size of your nuggets.
Air Fryer Method:
- Pre-heat the air fryer to 200 Celsius / 400 Fahrenheit.
- Air fry the nuggets for 12-15 minutes. Leave space between the pieces so the air can circulate. You'll need to fry the nuggets in 2 batches. Air fry at 400 degrees for 7-10 minutes, turning halfway through cooking time, until golden.
- For best results, reheat them in a preheated oven until warm and crisp.
Pan-Fry Method:
- Heat 1 centimetre of light olive oil, avocado oil or coconut oil in a deep frying pan.
- Fry the nuggets for 3-4 minutes on each side.Check with a knife that the meat inside is no longer pink and the juices run clear.
- Put on kitchen paper before serving to drain off any excess oil before serving.
6. Cool and Serve
- Let the keto nuggets cool slightly before serving.
Tips for the Perfect Keto Chicken Nuggets
- Brining: Brine the chicken for extra tender meat: Put the chicken pieces into a bowl with 1 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and 1 teaspoon of salt. Brine for 10 minutes to 1 hour. Then pat dry and proceed with the recipe.
- Prevent Clumping: Coating 3 - 4 nuggets at a time prevents excessive clumping.
- High-Temperature Cooking: Baking the nuggets at a high temperature, around 425°F/220°C when oven baking or 400℉/200℃ for air frying, ensures that they cook quickly and develop that coveted crispiness without the need for deep frying.
- Cooling Rack: While baking, place the nuggets on a cooling rack for extra crispness.
Variations and Substitutions
- Nut-Free: Replace the almond flour with coconut flour or with crushed pork rinds.
- Dairy-Free: Simply replace the parmesan with more almond flour or nutritional yeast.
- Adjust the flavor: Add a pinch of cayenne pepper or your favorite hot sauce to the egg mixture for a little extra kick in your chicken nuggets.
- Make ahead: Use canned chicken or shape your chicken nuggets ahead of time and freeze them before baking.
- Breadcrumbs Substitution You can substitute with breadcrumbs, almond flour or coconut flour for a more nutty flavor.
Serving Suggestions
Serve with your favorite dipping sauce. We like sugar free ketchup, this sugar Free BBQ Sauce or my super simple keto mayonnaise.
My family likes to eat chicken nuggets as a main course with a green crisp salad. Sometimes I also serve a side of air fryer radishes, keto onion rings or air fryer turnip fries.
Read also: Low Sodium Diet Frozen Dinners
A good dipping sauce can improve the taste of your chicken nuggets, and making your sauces at home is super simple. For body-friendly sauces, you can use our homemade dipping sauces like buffalo chicken dip, BBQ sauce, and ranch to create delicious dipping options.
These chicken nuggets are perfect for dipping into your favorite sauces. For a complete meal, serve them with roasted veggies, a broccoli salad, or even cauliflower rice.
This recipe pairs well with all my keto sauce recipes: Easy Keto BBQ Sauce, Keto Ranch Dressing, and Keto Honey Mustard Sauce. Classic Dipping Sauces: Serve your chicken nuggets with classic dipping sauces such as Creamy Buffalo Wing Sauce, Keto BBQ Sauce, Sugar-Free Ketchup, Keto Honey Mustard Sauce, or Keto Ranch Sauce. Get creative and experiment with different flavors to find your favorite combination.
Storage and Reheating Instructions
Refrigerator: Store in an airtight tupperware in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Freezer: You can freeze chicken nuggets both cooked and uncooked for up to 3 months. For this, put the nuggets on a tray lined with parchment paper. Once frozen, transfer them into a freezer bag.
Read also: Convenient Diet Meal Options
To reheat: Reheat fridge cold nuggets in the oven to re-crisp the batter. Reheat previously frozen nuggets straight from the freezer. There is no need to thaw them first. If they have been previously baked, this will take about 20 minutes. Uncooked frozen nuggets will take a little longer.
Store any leftover cooked chicken nuggets in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days. For best results, reheat them in a preheated oven until warm and crisp.
Nutritional Information
Net carbs: 2.6g per serving if serving as a main course.
The serving is 6 nuggets for just 2 net carbs or 3 total carbs and 40 grams of protein!
For 6 keto chicken nuggets you will consume 6 grams of net carbs compared to McDonalds 6 pack which is 14 carbs.
Read also: Ultimate Keto Pizza Guide
Please note that nutrient values are estimates only. Variations can occur due to product availability and manner of food preparation.
Keto Chicken Nuggets Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken breast, cut into 3cm cubes
- 2 large eggs, whisked
- 1 cup almond flour
- ¼ cup ground flaxseed
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon seasoning
- Olive oil spray
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut the chicken into 3 cm cubes.
- In a shallow bowl, whisk the eggs.
- In another shallow bowl, combine almond flour, ground flaxseed, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and seasoning.
- Dip each chicken piece in the egg, shake off the excess, then dip into the almond flour mixture, ensuring it's fully coated.
- Place the coated chicken nuggets on the prepared baking sheet.
- Drizzle or spray with olive oil.
- Bake for 15 minutes, flip, and bake for another 10 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.
- Let cool slightly before serving.