Copycat Chick-fil-A Nuggets with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce are just as good as the real thing. Enjoy this delicious take-out-fake-out chicken dinner at home!
When you’re gluten free, most fast food restaurants are a hard no.
Except Chick-fil-A coming in clutch with waffle fries and grilled chicken nuggets!
When you’re craving crunch and a taste of traditional chicken nuggets though, you will not believe how delicious and simple copycat Chick-fil-A Nuggets with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce are. Skip the drive-thru for this homemade version you can make right at home!
Start by cutting a couple large chicken breasts into bite sized pieces then season with salt and pepper and place them inside a medium-sized bowl or gallon-size Ziplock bag.
To the bag add a marinade consisting of milk (any kind), an egg, and pickle juice.
Yes, pickle juice! I once heard that the key to Chick-fil-A’s signature chicken nugget flavor that it’s injected with pickle juice. Who’s to say if that’s true but either way, the addition of pickle juice to the marinade will impart juiciness and flavor to the chicken nuggets — and that’s definitely not a bad thing!
Let the chicken marinate in the mixture for 2-4 hours in the fridge.
When it’s time to cook the chicken, combine gluten free flour (or all-purpose flour if not gluten free) to another gallon-size Ziplock bag with powdered sugar, salt, and pepper then seal and shake to combine.
Transfer the chicken pieces into the mixture with tongs then seal and shake the bag again to evenly coat the chicken pieces.
Next heat peanut oil, which is what Chick-fil-A uses to fry all their foods, in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. If you don’t have peanut oil, vegetable or canola oil will work great.
Test the oil to see if it’s hot enough by dropping a bit of the flour mixture into the pot. If it sizzles, the oil is ready. It it pops and spatters, the oil is too hot. If it does nothing at all, it’s too cold.
Working in two batches in order to avoid crowding the pan, place the coated chicken pieces into the oil using tongs. Cook until one side is golden brown, 2-3 minutes, then flip and cook until the other side is golden brown.
It depends on how big you cut your chicken, but my 1″ chicken pieces take about 3 minutes on each side.
Remove the chicken to a paper-towel lined plate then continue with the other half.
Serve ’em hot and fresh with a simple homemade honey mustard sauce that’s spoon-drink-worthy. SO GOOD!
I know you can buy Chick-fil-A sauce at the grocery store these days, but my homemade, creamy honey mustard sauce is super simple, and a bit lighter. It’s the perfect pairing.
Dip, devour, and enjoy!
Chick-fil-A Nuggets with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
- 1lb chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 3/4 cup milk, any kind
- 1/4 cup dill pickle juice
- 1 egg
- 1-1/4 cups flour, gluten free or all-purpose (dish will not be GF if using AP flour)
- 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 cup peanut oil, divided, or canola or vegetable oil
For the Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce:
- 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1-1/2 Tablespoons yellow mustard
- 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 Tablespoons honey
Directions
For the Chicken Nuggets:
- In a medium-size mixing bowl or gallon-size Ziplock bag, add the egg, milk, and pickle juice then whisk or squish to combine. Add the chicken pieces then cover or seal and marinate in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours.
- In another gallon-size Ziplock bag, add the flour, powdered sugar, salt, and pepper then shake to combine. Remove the chicken from the marinade then add to the bag with the dry ingredients and shake to coat the chicken completely.
- Add the oil to a large, heavy-bottomed skillet or dutch oven then heat over medium-high heat (6 or 7 out of 10). Test the oil by dropping in a bit of the flour mixture. If it sizzles, the oil is ready, if it pops, lower the temperature a bit, if it does nothing, the oil is too cold.
- Carefully place half the chicken pieces into the oil with tongs. Cook the chicken for 2-3 minutes, or until golden brown on one side. Turn the chicken over then cook for 2-3 more minutes. Remove the pieces to a paper-towel lined plate then cook the other half of the chicken.
For the Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce:
- Stir together the honey mustard dipping sauce ingredients then serve with the hot chicken bites. Can be made up to 5 days ahead of time.
Notes
- Estimated nutrition information includes all the cooking oil.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
Has anyone tried to bake or broil these? Can I use bread & butter pickle juice or does it have to be dill?
Has anyone tried to bake or broil these? Can I use bread & butter pickle juice or does it have to be dill pickles.
I made these today Superbowl Sunday. Oh my they were AWESOME!!!! I found you on Pinterest and all my food today was from Pinterest…. was a great day! Thank you so much. I will be checking out your blog very often now!! Thank you!
These look so yum! I am so making these for the Super Bowl this Sunday!!
I just finished making these for dinner. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the success of some others. Supposedly the secret is pickle juice and powdered sugar, but after frying and trying the nuggets, that’s all they tasted like: pickles and sugar. Which, in my humble opinion, was not a great combination. Maybe it’s because I didn’t use peanut oil, maybe it’s because I didn’t use a pressure cooker like a chickfila employee advised, but they tasted almost nothing like the original.
However, I really liked the texture of the nuggets, so it wasn’t a completely wasted experiment. I might try the same method with different seasonings, because they were nice and crunchy, just like I like them.
I want to try these but I can’t find where you state weather the pickle juice is sweet or dill pickle juice.
Dill!
These are fantastic!
could you bake these instead of fry them? if so, what temp and how long would you recommend? we are trying to cut calories but still have tasty food :)
Hi Heather! I’ve never tried baking them, but you could try spraying them with nonstick spray then baking at 400 for 7-10 minutes? Let me know if it works out!
These sound great! Making them tonight for dinner. Any suggestions on what to serve along side them?
I made these tonight, they were a hit with my husband. The only thing we found different was the amount of powdered sugar was bit much for us. Other than that they are great!
I made these tonight… I thought they were good but they weren’t very chick-fil-a tasting… I don’t know what I did wrong… but they were good enough that I’ll try them again. Hopefully I’ll have better luck next time.
the sauce was great! thanks for sharing!
Can these be frozen & reheated in the oven? Has anyone tried this?
I have to tell you, this is pretty spot on. And its the first meal I have fixed in a LONG time that everyone has loved. Thank you!