Ready in 30 minutes and family approved, these delicious Crispy Keto Chicken Nuggets are easy to make and come in at only 1 g net carb per 5 nuggets! Bread them, toss them into the oven and 20 minutes later you’ve got yourself a tasty tray of nuggets!
This post was originally published on August 16, 2019 and has been updated with fresh content and images, though the recipe remains perfectly the same.
CHICKEN NUGGETS! Who doesn’t love a good ol’ crispy chicken nugget? They bring me back to my childhood. Keto Chicken Nuggets are so much better than the chicken nuggets from my past. These little love nuggets are made with few ingredients and completely unprocessed!
Not only are they good right off the baking sheet, these Crispy Keto Chicken Nuggets are excellent to bring to a potluck and the star of the show on appetizer night, plus, my kids love them! I am always looking for easy and healthy low carb dishes my whole family will enjoy. These are a major hit. I hope you think so too!
Why this recipe works
- Made with chicken breast – no processed meats here!
- Family approved – What kid doesn’t love chicken nuggets, never mind the ‘big kids’ in the house. *cough Nick cough*
- Have these Keto Chicken Nuggets on the table in 30 minutes, making them a great weekday meal.
- They are crunchy and delicious! No soggy crusted chicken here people, just juicy chicken breast coated with an epic crispy crust.
Ingredients
How to make Crispy Keto Chicken Nuggets
Heat your oven to 400° and line two baking sheets with non sticking baking mats or parchment paper. Crack the egg into a bowl and whisk in the water until the egg is fully combined with the water.
Crush the pork rinds into a fine crumb using either a food processor or emptying them into a bag and crushing/rolling with a rolling pin. Pour them into a bowl and then mix in the parmesan, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, sea salt and pepper to make the breading. Make sure there are no large clumps left!
Cut the chicken breast into 1 – 1 1/2″ pieces. Set up your work station with the chicken, egg wash, breading and prepared baking sheets all beside each other.
Using one hand only for the breading and the other hand only for the egg wash, dip each nugget into the egg wash and then toss it around in the breading. Place it on the baking sheet and then repeat for all pieces of chicken.
Double dip the nuggets until all of the pork rinds have been used up.
Bake in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, until the internal temperature of the chicken has reached 180°.
Expert Tips
- If you bought chicken breast with the bone in and skin on, no worries, just remove the skin, then carefully cut the bone away from the breast. Never done it before? Watch this video.
- I like to use either a food processor or a rolling pin to crush the pork rinds. Either way you’ll get the fine crumble that you’ll need for these Keto Chicken Nuggets. The food processor is a lot quicker, the rolling pin is a little funner – wack away!
- Be sure to whisk the egg wash well enough. You’ll actually want to over-whisk a bit to ensure the egg white has been fully incorporated into the water.
- Try your best not to mix up your hands while breading the chicken. When pork rinds get wet, they tend to clump together, making it really difficult to use as a coating. We want all that coating on the chicken, not left in a bowl all clumped together.
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Crispy Keto Chicken Nuggets
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs boneless skinless chicken breast
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup water
- 100 g pork rinds
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- ½ tsp sea salt
Instructions
Equipment Needed
- Cutting Board and Knife
- 2 x Bowls
- Whisk
- Rolling Pin or Food Processor. ( Or something to smash the pork rinds into crumbs )
- Baking Sheet and Non Stick Baking Mat or Parchment Paper
Directions
- Heat your oven to 400° and line two baking sheets with non sticking baking mats or parchment paper. Crack the egg into a bowl and whisk in the water until the egg is fully combined with the water.
- Crush the pork rinds into a fine crumb using either a food processor or emptying them into a bag and crushing/rolling with a rolling pin. Pour them into a bowl and then mix in the parmesan, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, sea salt and pepper to make the breading. Make sure there are no large clumps left!
- Cut the chicken breast into 1 – 1 1/2" pieces. Set up your work station with the chicken, egg wash, breading and prepared baking sheets all beside each other.
- Using one hand only for the breading and the other hand only for the egg wash, dip each nugget into the egg wash and then toss it around in the breading. Place it on the baking sheet and then repeat for all pieces of chicken.
- Double dip the nuggets until all of the pork rinds have been used up, then bake in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, until the internal temperature of the chicken has reached 180°. Serve hot and enjoy!
Notes
- If you bought chicken breast with the bone in and skin on, no worries, just remove the skin, then carefully cut the bone away from the breast. Never done it before? Watch this video.
- I like to use either a food processor or a rolling pin to crush the pork rinds. Either way you’ll get the fine crumble that you’ll need for these Keto Chicken Nuggets. The food processor is a lot quicker, the rolling pin is a little funner – wack away!
- Be sure to whisk the egg wash well enough. You’ll actually want to over-whisk a bit to ensure the egg white has been fully incorporated into the water.
- Try your best not to mix up your hands while breading the chicken. When pork rinds get wet, they tend to clump together, making it really difficult to use as a coating. We want all that coating on the chicken, not left in a bowl all clumped together.
- Try these Keto Chicken Nuggets with these keto friendly dip ideas: Honey Mustard, Caesar, Ranch or BBQ Sauce!
Hi, Aleta! These look delicious and easy! I’ve been wanting to try breading with pork rinds, but I can’t get over the smell of the rinds. Would you tell me what brand of rinds you use? TIA
Hey Lynn! I use pork rinds for breading allll the time! And though I agree with you, their smell aint the best, I find using them as breading fantastic! I just use the Old Dutch pork rinds, which I find in the chip section of my grocery store. Their smell put me off for a long time, I still won’t eat them straight up as a snack, but am so glad I pushed past that and tried them as a breading.. it’s awesome! I hope you give it a try, and would love to hear back from you on how you liked it!
I love that crispy outside! Yum! Will definitely be making these soon.
Awesome I hope you love them Karly!
Making homemade nuggets is the best. YOU know EXACTLY what goes into them. I know my grandkids would love these next sleepover for dinner.
Exactly! I hope they love them, Gloria!
I love the idea of using pork rinds and parmesan to coat chicken nuggets! I’m going to give these a try this week but have just one question – have you made these with chicken thighs? It probably changes the baking time, but by how much? Thank you!
Hey Rebecca! I actually have not tried this with chicken thighs, they would certainly make smaller nuggets. I would try 15 minutes, check the temperature, and go from there 🙂
My girls could eat chicken nuggets every night if we let them so it’s nice to come across I healthier version. I love your idea of using pork rinds to make it crisp and flavorful.
Thanks Kelly, my girls too! I hope yours love these as much as mine do 🙂
I used to bread things with pork rinds but stopped because of the smell. I’m sensitive to smells, but didn’t mind the taste. I have to get back into it and this chicken nugget recipe is going to be how I do it! It looks super easy and delicious!
Thanks Elaine! I am also not a fan of their smell but love them as crust!
Chicken nuggets used to be the only thing my husband would eat when we started dating!! We were in high school, but still!
I have never actually made it from scratch. Will definitely put this on my to-do list!!
Well I guess your husband and I have something in common haha
I can imagine eating them with the honey mustard! They look amazing and the list of ingredients with pork rinds and parmesan has me drooling over this recipe!
Thanks Paula!
I have to say, I was not expecting the pork rinds in this recipe. But it totally makes sense to get crispy chicken nuggets without a ton of flour. Smart!
Thanks Lizzy!
You can tell how crispy these look just by the photos! My kid is currently obsessed with store-bought nuggets (you know, the ones that are shaped like dinosaurs), so I’m definitely going to have to try these for a more healthy and fresh alternative. Thanks for the great recipe!
Isn’t it funny how much kids like chicken nuggets? I mean, especially when they are shaped like dinosaurs!
Being keto for a few years this recipe is totally up my alley. So crunchy and damn delicious what is not to love. Thanks for an easy recipe that I can use. Who said nuggets were just for kids lol.
Hahaha right?! My husband will definitely agree that nuggets are not only for kids!
Chicken nuggets take me back to my childhood! Although I’m pretty sure I’ve never had nuggets quite this crispy before. They look awesome! And breading them in pork rinds is a great idea. I’ll have to give it a try some time!
Thanks Leanne!
Looks absolutely crispy. Who can resist crispy homemade nuggets. Adding pork rinds is really unique, never tried it.
Thanks Jo 🙂
Delicious looking and sounding chicken nuggets! Your pics are so nice! Thanks so much for sharing :).
Thanks Daniela!
Parm from a can or fresh grated?
Hey Rick, we use the parmesan from a can for the breading, as it has the best texture 🙂