These homemade Chicken Nuggets (with sweet potato!) are an easy toddler dinner that parents will enjoy, too. They’re packed with nutrition and have a veggie right in the mix!
Homemade Chicken Nuggets
I know many kids love chicken nuggets, and they are a great option for easy meals that are filled with nutrients, including protein. And this homemade version also has sweet potato, for more flavor and nutrition.
If you start with ground chicken, rather than breast or thigh meat, you can get right to the mixing and shaping the nuggets, without any grinding or chopping of meat required. It’s such an easy method to make a favorite toddler chicken recipe for kids.
Since the last thing you need is a fussy recipe that requires frying or standing by the stove, this homemade chicken nugget recipe is simply baked in the oven. I like to bake my chicken nuggets on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet (or do them in an air fryer) so the cleanup is easy, too.
We like these for an iron-rich food for kids or toddler dinners with a simple veggie and carbohydrate like rice or pasta for kids. My kids like these most when dipped in ketchup. We’ve also put them into tacos! (You can find my more classic baked chicken nuggets to try, too.)
Table of Contents
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Ingredients You Need
The beauty of this homemade Chicken Nuggget recipe is that it has only a few simple ingredients including the following items.
- Ground chicken: This is lean and mellow in flavor, which is a nice complement to the rest of the ingredients.
- Sweet potato: You’ll want to use fully cooked homemade mashed sweet potato or canned or jarred sweet potato puree.
- Bread crumbs: Plain or Italian-flavor both work, so use the one you prefer.
- Salt: This helps to even out the flavors. If you want to skip it for a baby, feel free.
- Onion powder: This is optional for additional flavor.
Ingredient Substitutions
- Gluten-free: To make these healthy chicken nuggets gluten-free, try these gluten-free bread crumbs from Ian’s.
- This recipe is egg-free, dairy-free, and nut-free, and it can be easily made gluten-free, so it’s a great dinner idea for kids with food allergies.
- You can use panko or regular-style bread crumbs.
- You could use Mashed Butternut Squash in place of the sweet potato if that’s what you have on hand.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s how a look at the process involved in making this homemade chicken nugget recipe so you know what to expect. Scroll down to the end of the post for the full amounts and timing.
- Cook your sweet potato ahead of time. You can do this a few days ahead and store it in an airtight container in the fridge or the morning you plan to make these. Mash the cooled potato.
- Add the potato to a bowl with the ground chicken and salt. Add onion powder if using.
- Form into small balls, flatten slightly, and coat in bread crumbs.
- Place onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake.
TIP: The batter is slightly sticky, so you’ll want to wash your hands well once you have the nuggets formed!
How to Cook Sweet Potato
For the sweet potato, which adds moisture as well as vitamin A and fiber, you can either roast ahead of time, steam cubes, or use a slow cooker.
- To cook it quickly in the microwave: Simply peel, cube, and place it into a bowl of water. Microwave for 3-4 minutes or until soft. Drain and set aside.
- To make easy roasted Sweet Potato Baby Food: Poke the potato with a knife, place onto a foil-lined baking dish, and bake for 45-60 minutes at 400 degrees F or until soft.
- Here’s how to make mashed Crockpot Sweet Potatoes.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can use plain bread crumbs or panko style, depending on what you have and what flavor you prefer. Panko style, which are slightly bigger pieces than traditional bread crumbs, tend to be a little crispier—which is great for older kiddos. Younger toddlers and babies may be able to handle the texture of regular bread crumbs better at first.
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Reheat for 6-8 minutes in the oven at 375 degrees F or for about 15-30 seconds in the microwave. (They will crisp up in the oven and be soft when reheated in the microwave.)
Yes, they come out a little crispier and cook a little faster.
Serving Suggestions
You can really pair this homemade chicken nugget recipe with anything you and your toddlers like, though we tend to keep it simple with a side of rice and veggies, or rolls and fruit.
Feel free to keep it super basic and just balance it with other food groups—since the nuggets cover protein, you can add dairy, carbohydrates, and produce to round things out.
How to Store and Reheat
Store any leftover homemade chicken nuggets in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Reheat for 6-8 minutes in the oven at 375 degrees F, about 4 minutes in a 375-degrees-F air fryer, or for about 15-30 seconds in the microwave. (They will crisp up in the oven and be soft when reheated in the microwave.)
Best Tips for Success
- Use traditional bread crumbs or panko-style. Panko will make the exterior a little crunchier.
- Use gluten-free bread crumbs if needed.
- Plan to prepare the sweet potato ahead of time so it has a chance to cool.
- Using this crock pot sweet potato method is super easy, though you can also roast it or steam it in the microwave.
- You can omit the salt if making these for a baby.
- Serve with ketchup or another favorite dip.
- Pair with Spinach Pasta Sauce, Roasted Carrot “Fries”, or Cheesy Rice.
Related Recipes
I’d love to hear your feedback if you try this recipe, so please comment below to share!
Homemade Chicken Nuggets (with Sweet Potato)
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1 cup mashed sweet potato (or fully cooked and cubed sweet potato)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder (optional; you could also add garlic powder or dried oregano)
- ½ cup regular or panko-style bread crumbs (plain or Italian-flavor)
Instructions
- Mash together the chicken, sweet potato, salt, and onion powder in a medium bowl with a potato masher or a large fork. Place the bread crumbs into a separate shallow bowl.
- Form the chicken mixture into 1-tablespoon-size balls and roll in bread crumbs.
- Flatten slightly (or form into tot-shapes) and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Optional: Spray or brush lightly with olive oil.
- Bake for 22-24 minutes at 375 degrees F or until golden brown on the bottom and cooked through.
- Remove from oven, let cool for a minute or two and serve warm.
- (To cook in an air fryer, place onto a greased tray or basket and cook for 10-12 minutes at 400 degrees F. I don't turn over in the middle of cooking.)
Equipment
Notes
- Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat for 6-8 minutes in the oven at 375 degrees F, about 4 minutes in a 375-degree-F air fryer, or for about 15-30 seconds in the microwave. (They will crisp up in the oven and be soft when reheated in the microwave.)
- You can also freeze fully cooked and cooled nuggets in a freezer bag with as much air removed as possible for up to 6 months. Heat the same as above.
- *To roast a medium sweet potato, wash and poke with a paring knife. (The holes will let steam escape.) Place on a foil-lined baking sheet or pan and bake for 45-60 minutes at 400 degrees F. Remove from oven, let cool, and store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- *To steam a medium sweet potato, remove the skin with a vegetable peeler and dice the flesh. Place into a steamer basket in a pot filled with a few inches of water. Cover, bring water to a simmer, and cook for 6-8 minutes or until sweet potato is soft. Let cool before storing or using.
- Use traditional bread crumbs or panko-style. Panko will make the exterior a little crunchier.
- Use gluten-free bread crumbs if needed.
- Plan to prepare the sweet potato ahead of time so it has a chance to cool.
- You can omit the salt if making these for a baby.
Nutrition
This post was first published March 2018.
Amazing and delicious! Next time I might add a little parm to the Panko breading. These are seriously great!
Did anyone freeze these before cooking? And then cook from frozen from the freezer or defrost them?
I’m just cooking my first batch!
I would recommend baking them and then freezing them once they’re fully cooked and thawed. Then you can quickly warm them in the oven (6-8 minutes) or microwave (30-60 seconds)
Just made these, and they’re pretty yummy! However, the bottoms got blackened by the sugars in the sweet potato i guess? Any thoughts on this? I don’t mind it, but not sure if it’ll but my girls off. Thanks!
Did you bake them on parchment? I haven’t had that happen to the bottoms before—I’m sorry if it causes any issues with whether the girls will eat them!
Yep, i used parchment. So weird! It was sticky, so leads me to believe it’s from the sweet potato. Fingers crossed they will eat it – thank you either way for the great recipe!
Any recommendations on how to prepare them from frozen for a school lunch box? Just thaw overnight in the fridge..? Thanks!
Are you planning to send them warm or cold? If warm in a thermos you can warm them in a 375 F oven for 6-8 minutes. If cold you could just send them thawed.
It’s really hard to find allergen friendly recipes for kiddos that actually taste good. These are awesome! My 17 month old is cutting a few teeth and has been refusing everything but cheese and blueberries. I took these out of the oven and after cooling, my son ate three! After his dinner. And my husband ate 4, haha! I used 2 lbs of ground chicken and one extra large roasted sweet potato- they came out perfect! Will vacuum seal and freeze the nuggets in packages of 6 or so. Thanks so much for the easy recipe! These cake together so quickly and easily and are such a hit!
I am so glad to hear that and I love the freezing idea!
Would love to try this recipe. I don’t see eggs on the ingredients list so does the recipe require egeggsHow many? I saw someone asked if this can be made without eggs but don’t see it in the recipe. Also, can these be frozen? How long are they good for if frozen? Thanks!
They do not contain eggs! I haven’t tried freezing them but I think these instructions would work well: Reheat for 8-10 minutes in the oven at 375 degrees F or for about 15-30 seconds in the microwave or until warmed through
YUMMY! My toddler girl actually ate meat, thanks to you! I’m so happy 🙂 It’s crunchy on the outside and soft sweet deliciousness on the inside. Will definitely try out your other recipes!
Yay! I’m so happy to hear this!
Not such a fan of the broccoli tots but these are delish! Hope my son agrees!
Fingers crossed!
Awesome!!! I doubled the recipe so I would have enough to store in the freezer. Guess what? I could only save 6 pieces in the freezer. My toddler gobbled them up. My husband ate at least 5, my mom ate her fair share too. Needless to say it was a hit. It is time consuming though, so make sure to make a large batch .
I’m so glad it was a hit and that’s such a good tip to make a big batch!
how do you reheat from frozen? or serve cold once defrosted?
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat for 6-8 minutes in the oven at 375 degrees F or for about 15-30 seconds in the microwave. (They will crisp up in the oven and be soft when reheated in the microwave.) They’re better warm!
would it work to process a chicken breast in a cuisine art and then follow the recipe?
I haven’t done it that way but I would think so!
I made this last night. SO good! Even my husband loved them!! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes!
I’m so glad to hear that!!
Do you think I could swap out the ground chicken for ground turkey? Would it be about the same cook time? (That’s what I have in the fridge now). Thanks!
I would think that would work! I haven’t tried it but they usually cook up similarly and yes, cook time should be the same if you make them the same size as the recipe calls for. I’d love to hear how they turn out!
can these be frozen? to reheat at a later date ?
Yes! It’s at the very bottom of the recipe: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat for 6-8 minutes in the oven at 375 degrees F or for about 15-30 seconds in the microwave. (They will crisp up in the oven and be soft when reheated in the microwave.)
Well now. I never would have thought of that. What a clever way to get them to eat their veggies!
It’s a nice way to change things up on the veggie-front!
I have baked a sort of similar recipe and they turn out well. Try 375 F on a Silpat or parchment lined baking sheet for 22-25 minutes using the same flattened 1-inch portions.