Which brands go in the trash and which ones in your shopping cart? We’ve determined.
Kids love chicken nuggets, and they’re a staple on lunch menus and late-night fast food cravings alike. Even the pickiest eaters will find them enticing because of their crunchy, bite-sized goodness and powerful flavor and nutritional content. Chicken nuggets are a flexible treat that may be eaten on their own or combined with a variety of sauces.
We highly recommend having a freezer cache of nuggets on hand for when you need to feed a large group of people, whip up a quick snack, or try out a quick chicken parmesan recipe. Nuggets that are frozen are a culinary staple.
But nuggets aren’t all made equally. A subpar nugget might detract from the experience by tasting like cardboard or having a sponge-like texture. It’s like playing culinary roulette to select a random bag from the freezer aisle. We brought together a panel of food experts and lovers of chicken nuggets to help us taste our way through the many variations available. Our results, which are ordered from worst to best, help you decide what to put in your shopping basket and what to throw away.
1
Bell & Evans Chicken Nuggets
Tyson would have been our favorite nugget if you had asked our younger selves. But if we were adults, we would absolutely pick Bell & Evans. They are, of course, the most costly choice. Indeed, it takes a whole half hour to prepare them. It’s worth every bit, though, we assure you.
Bell & Evans nuggets are made of whole chunks of raw chicken, not completely cooked ground chicken patties like those seen at Chick-fil-A. Thus, the additional time is intended for the oven to properly cook the meat. Your perseverance will eventually pay off, leaving you with succulent, savory chicken that surpasses all other nuggets in texture and taste.
2
Tyson Chicken Nuggets
You don’t need to look any farther if you’re looking for the perfect chicken nugget. The flavor of Tyson chicken nuggets has improved since our childhood. The flesh is succulent without being overly sloppy, and they have a pleasantly crunchy texture with a hint of salt. Tyson is the brand to choose if you’re in the mood for something retro.
3
Earth’s Best Chicken Nuggets
There’s just one place to go if you’re looking for the perfect chicken nugget. Even the taste of Tyson chicken nuggets from our childhood has improved. With just the right amount of saltiness, they are wonderfully crunchy, and the meat is succulent without being overly mushy. Tyson is the brand to choose if you’re craving something retro.
4
Yummy Dino Buddies Chicken Nuggets
This was probably the brand that typified your youth if you ate dinosaur chicken nuggets as a child. These are impossible to pass in the Costco freezer section without getting nostalgic flashbacks.
Even if our positive experiences during the taste test may have clouded our judgment, these nuggets are nonetheless quite tasty. The chicken tastes like chicken, you know, and they have the perfect balance of breading to meat. However, for the perfect level of crispness, we suggest air-frying these suckers.
5
Trader Joe’s Chicken Nuggets
When it comes to choosing your chicken nuggets, you don’t really have a choice because Trader Joe’s stocks mostly their own private label products. Fortunately, though, their secret formula is fairly reliable.
These nuggets are in the refrigerated section, unlike the others on this list. This storage solution has certain benefits and drawbacks. Advantage: It cooks more quickly than its frozen counterparts. Cons: Some of the crunchy exterior is lost during chilling. However, it’s not at all a poor nugget.
6
Applegate Chicken Nuggets
Among all of the brands we’ve tried, Applegate has some of the strongest chicken flavor. Everything else about it is merely mediocre.
Everything is well with the breading. The delicate texture is present. During our taste, we weren’t particularly impressed. We wouldn’t exactly be thrilled about clearing our dishes if they were placed in front of us.
7
Perdue Chicken Nuggets
On our list, Perdue appeared to be one of the more promising brands. You would think that being one of the biggest chicken producers in the nation, they would be familiar with nuggets. False.
These chicken nuggets are much too tender. The breading remained totally soaked in chicken juice even after baking them for longer than was advised. The target market for these nuggets, according to one of our tasters, is “teething babies.” Firm rejection.
8
KidFresh Chicken Nuggets
These nuggets appear to be rather typical at first sight. However, cauliflower is a very covert hidden element. We can somewhat understand the appeal if you’re making a desperate attempt to include veggies into your child’s diet. It’s a serious drawback, though, for the rest of us.
The texture gets thrown off by the cauliflower. It lessens the taste of chicken. It provides very little in the way of nourishment. Furthermore, we’re not really attempting to maximize our macros when we eat chicken nuggets, let’s face it.
9
Weaver Chicken Nuggets
Fried chicken nuggets are by nature a comfort dish. Particularly the Weaver chicken nuggets remind me of my depressing early years. Like having the cafeteria all to yourself. similar to receiving a poor test result similar to not being invited to a birthday celebration.
Though visually similar to McDonald’s, our tasters found that these nuggets are merely a soggy and boring imitation of the original. Be kind to yourself and avoid them completely.
10
Banquet Chicken Nuggets
A crispy outside and supple, juicy meat should coexist in harmony to create the ideal chicken nugget. It was genuinely astonishing how much the banquet representatives lean toward the latter.
The middle is drenched. It felt a little moist, like something gone wrong. A taster put this brand best: “Gushers in chicken nugget form.” We decided after tasting these that Banquet should just continue serving TV dinners.
