Homemade Chicken Nuggets {Dairy Free, Gluten Free}

Becca here with a recipe that I'm super excited to share!  I've tried several homemade chicken nugget recipes over the years, with mixed success, but nothing that I liked well enough to make again, and definitely nothing I liked well enough to share here.  However, after changing this recipe quite a bit, I finally have one that my family all loves, and is really easy to make also, which I appreciate, of course!  A bonus for those of you that have food restrictions is that it is both gluten and dairy free also!  One recipe makes three half-sheet sized pans (like pictured above) of large nuggets, so I've included freezing and reheating instructions at the end also.  I hope you'll give this recipe a try, it's a definite winner in my family!

Homemade Chicken Nuggets
{Dairy Free, Gluten Free}

8 cups of really tender cooked chicken, a mix of dark and white meat (I buy the hormone/antibiotic free 2 pack of chickens at Sam's Club and cook both of them together in my large slow cooker overnight on low, let it cool, and then remove the meat that is literally falling off of the bone.  See this post for more information on that and how to make chicken stock from the leftovers too!)
5 large eggs
1/2 - 1 cup mayonnaise (depending on what kind of chicken you've used, see recipe for further instructions)
1 Tablespoon salt
8 cups plain puffed rice cereal (this is unsweetened, just plain puffed brown rice, nothing else added.  A big bag is $1 at Walmart on the cereal aisle, with the more natural/organic cereals.  It makes a great first finger food for babies too, my original intent for buying it!)


Preheat oven to 400.

In a large bowl, combine chicken, eggs, mayonnaise (start with 1/2 cup) and salt.  Use a large fork (or pulse in a food processor if you have one) to shred chicken and stir to combine all ingredients.  Add more mayonnaise, up to 1/2 more, until mixture will easily stick together and form patties.

Place puffed rice in large zip top bag, and hit with a rolling pin until at least half are crushed (a great job for a child, my boys love doing this part!)

Form small nuggets or patties in desired size.  Dip into partially crushed puffed rice, flipping over to coat both sides, gently patting so that it sticks.

Place onto silicone mat or parchment paper lined baking sheet.  When full, bake at 400 for 8-10 minutes, flip all nuggets over, and bake an additional 8-10 minutes.  If you're serving immediately, the edges and rice on the outside should be a dark golden brown and crisp.  If you're going to be freezing them for later, remove them from the oven when they're just starting to get a slight golden color so they aren't dry when you reheat them later.

Serve plain, or with your favorite nugget dipping sauce!  Enjoy!

Freezing Instructions:  Place cooled-to-room temperature nuggets into airtight container or zip top bag, and freeze.  To reheat, defrost in refrigerator overnight.  Set out about 30 minutes before ready to bake.  Reheat in 400 preheated oven for 5 minutes, or until heated through and crisp on the outside.  I don't recommend reheating in the microwave, as the outside doesn't keep its' crispness that way.