When Russ, the Domestic Man, posted a recipe for gluten-free nuggets that tasted like the real thing from Chick-Fil-A, I was a little skeptical. Since having to cut gluten due to Celiac disease, those little bites of fried glory were high on the list of things I will forever miss. Not chicken nuggets. I can whip up some good nuggets with gluten free flour. But the FLAVOR in chick-fil-a is something to rave about.
I decided to take him up on his claim. I followed the recipe as closely as possible. I did not have tapioca starch so I used a combo flour that included tapioca along with some other gluten-free starches. Everything else, was exactly as directed.
Gluten Free Chick-Fil-A Nuggets
- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup dill pickle juice
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2 tbsp cream (coconut milk okay)
- 1/4 cup gluten-free all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tsp each salt and black pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 dash ground cayenne pepper
- 1/2 cup lard or coconut oil for frying
1. Cut chicken into cubes. Add to a storage bag with pickle juice. Marinate in fridge for an hour.
2. Drain pickle juice. Add cream or coconut milk (strict paleo) and beaten egg. Let sit 5 minutes while you get dry ingredients together.
3. Drain cream and egg. It doesn’t have to be bone dry, but let excess liquid drain out so there isn’t a swampy stew of raw chicken.
4. Combine dry ingredients. Start warming pan and oil/lard on med-high heat. Add dry ingredients to bag. CLOSE BAG COMPLETELY. Then start mixing and coating. Shake and squish and roll bag around for a couple of minutes.
5. Begin frying chicken. Do not crowd the pan. Turn every couple of minutes to evenly brown the chicken.
It will take a couple of batches to do all the chicken. But the time is worth it. Take a bite and you’ll see the difference.
If you like this and need more great ideas for gluten-free and Paleo friendly recipes, pre-order The Ancestral Table.
The Ancestral Table: Shepherd’s Pie
Saturday 15th of February 2014
[…] one of my newest (and fast becoming a top 5) cookbooks. When I think of Russ Crandall, I think of little bites of chicken heaven. I’m sure he wants to be known for more than that, so I’m working my way through his book and […]