Veggie Chicken Nuggets are yummy and healthy. They are packed with antioxidants and are a great way to get in extra veggies! Kids love them too!
Veggie Chicken Nuggets
Ingredients
- 1/2 head cauliflower
- 1/2 head broccoli
- 2 carrot grated
- 1 lb chicken ground
- 2 egg
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 egg whisked
- 1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs panko
Method
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Or you can preheat your air fryer to 400°F.
- Add cauliflower, broccoli and carrots to food processor. Pulse until finely ground.
- Add ground chicken and process until mixture is smooth. Add eggs, salt and pepper and mix well. Form into nugget shapes.
- Set our 3 shallow dishes. Place flour in 1 dish. Place egg and whisk in 3/4 cup water in another dish. Finally, place panko breadcrumbs in the last dish.
- Dip each nugget into flour, then egg mixture, then breadcrumbs.
- Place on greased baking sheet, and bake for 20 minutes at 350°F, then flip over, and bake for another 20 minutes until done.
- If you are making your nuggets in the air fryer, place nuggets in the air fryer basket, and spray with cooking spray. Fry at 400°F for 7 minutes, flip nuggets in basket, spray again with cooking spray and fry for another 7 minutes until done.
- Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
Private Notes
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Okay, so we know sometimes kiddos can get the best of us – they want chicken nuggets and we want them to eat literally anything else after a week-long chicken nugget streak…. sound familiar? We found a super way to sneak in extra veggies as well as some antioxidants.
Antioxidants are components of food that help to protect your body from molecules called free radicals. Free radicals are created by your body but can also cause damage to your cells. The body produces these free radicals when you are under a lot of stress, as you exercise, and during the conversion of food into energy for the body. There are also free radicals in the environment, caused by sources like cigarette smoke and air pollution. All of these factors result in damage to the cells of the body. After years and years of this damage, the cells can’t keep up and the body shows signs of lowered function through diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, cataracts and age-related macular degeneration.
So, what do antioxidants have to do with free radicals and all this stress on the body? Well, they actually help to slow down the damage that they cause and therefore, protect the body to prevent them from developing one of these diseases. And guess what some great sources of antioxidants are? Fruit and vegetables – specifically cauliflower, broccoli, and carrots. Cauliflower are also a great source of fiber, B-vitamins, and choline – a lesser known nutrient which is essential for learning as well as memory. Broccoli also supplies vitamins C and K, which help to build collagen, heal cuts and wounds, as well as form body tissues. Finally, as we all know, carrots are great for vision due to their content of Vitamin A. With this combination, you are getting 4 of the 5 vitamins you need all in one little nugget of this Veggie Chicken Nuggets recipe.
Please note:
Nutrition info is an estimate and may contain errors.
Klara Knezevic has over a decade of experience in the nutrition field and currently serves as the CEO and co-owner of Rebecca Bitzer and Associates. Klara is passionate about sharing practical nutrition tips to help you feel confident in the choices that you make. Coauthor of Cooking with Food Sensitivities Survival Guide and Nourished: 10 Ingredients to Happy, Healthy Eating.
