Food Friday - Chick-Fil-A Nuggets

I have to be honest, I think I've only eaten at Chick-Fil-A once or twice - while flying to Florida years ago.  There was one in the airport in Atlanta.  So yummy!  Well, when I saw this recipe for Chick-Fil-A chicken nuggets and their special sauce I figured it might be good :-) 

Chick-Fil-A Nuggets
adapted from Table For Two

These nuggets are so juicy and tender yet have great flavor.  My kids loved them and, more importantly, my husband loved them and said that I need to throw away all fried chicken/nugget recipes and only use this one.  As a matter of fact, he has even requested that I use this recipe to make some fried chicken - not just nuggets.  I was really surprised that he also loved the sauce.  He isn't usually a fan of a "honey mustard" type sauce but the mayo really rounded it out and made it pleasing to everyone.   I did not truely deep fry the nuggets - I had about 1/2 inch of oil in my pan and just make sure to turn them over so they were done on both sides. 

Ingredients:

For the sauce:

1/2 cup mayo

2 tbsp. mustard (regular prepared yellow mustard)

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tbsp. vinegar

2 tbsp. honey

Salt and pepper, to taste

For the nuggets:

8 chicken tenderloins or 6 chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces

2 1/2 cups flour

1/4 cup powdered sugar

4 tsp. salt

3 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. paprika

Peanut oil or canola oil for frying (I used canola)

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients for the sauce, mix well, and set aside or pop in the fridge.
2. In a large dutch oven or stockpot, heat up the oil over medium high heat to 375 degrees (see note below).
3. While the oil is heating, in a gallon ziploc bag, combine flour, sugar, salt, pepper, and paprika. Seal it and shake to combine well.
4. Throw the chicken bites into the ziploc bag, close it, and shake til all are coated well.
5. Using a slotted spoon, fish out the nuggets and shake off excess flour and place on a clean plate.
6. Before you start frying, prepare a plate by lining sheets of paper towels to drain the nuggets after frying.
7. When ready, place about 10-12 nuggets in the oil and let cook for about 5 minutes (but it also depends on the size of your nuggets).
8. Remove nuggets from oil with a spider strainer or slotted spoon and set on lined plate to drain. Continue until all nuggets have been cooked.
9. Serve hot with dipping sauce and/or ketchup