It is the first week of summer vacation, and I have to say our dinners have been unremarkable. Repeats of family favorites have been the order of the day. I have a couple menus picked out that I just haven't got around to making. Summer is supposed to be a lazy time and I have been sticking with tradition.
Lots of vacationers will be hitting the roads for family trips. A frequent culinary stop on road trips is McDonald's which offers the kid-favorite Chicken McNugget. I found several copycat recipes and decided I'd give making my own Chicken Nuggets a try. We are not frequent visitors to McDonald's so the homemade variety will be about as close as we get.
Making Chicken Nuggets was a little more labor intensive than I was hoping for today's dinner. Chicken breasts are chopped in a food processor and then seasoned and formed into small balls. The chicken balls are rolled in flour then egg and back into flour before frying in vegetable oil. The nuggets are drained on paper towels and sprinkled with salt. I served the nuggets with a childhood favorite of mine - Dill Dip.
Only 3 of the 5 family members had Chicken Nuggets for dinner tonight. I thought the texture and flavor was very good. I ate more than my share of the dip. My Middle One said that she likes them better than my Panko Chicken Fingers. When asked her opinion of the dip she said it was dilly. No Thank You Boy said I must have read his mind because he was hoping for battered chicken for dinner. He commented that I should buy a frying thingy and make preparing more Chicken Nuggets easier in the future.
I am not a big fan of deep frying. Eventhough my Chicken Nuggets are fried, I at least know that only chicken breast meat was used to make them. I'm not really sure what actually goes into a McDonald's Chicken McNugget and probably don't want to know.
Chicken Nuggets
makes about 30 nuggets
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut in small pieces
2 teaspoons Montreal Chicken Seasoning
2 extra large eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cup flour seasoned with Penzey's Chicago Steak Seasoning or salt and pepper
vegetable oil for frying
Put chicken in a food processor and process until chicken is chopped into very small pieces. Add Montreal Chicken Seasoning and pulse about 5 times.
Form chicken mixture into about 30 small balls. Put the beaten eggs in a pie plate and the seasoned flour in another pie plate. Heat about 2 inches of vegetable oil in a large saucepan to medium-high heat. Dredge the chicken balls in the flour then the eggs and then in the flour again. Slightly flatten the coated chicken ball. Fry about 3 - 5 nuggets at a time in the hot oil (about 350 degrees) for 3 - 4 minutes per side or until golden brown.
Remove the nuggets from the oil and drain on a paper towel lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt. Serve warm with honey mustard, barbecue sauce, Dill Dip (recipe below) or ketchup.
Dill Dip
This dip also goes well with crudite and chips.
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1 1/2 teaspoons dried dill
1/2 teaspoon Montreal Chicken Seasoning
In a small bowl, combine ingredients and mix well. Refrigerate for about 1 hour before serving.
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