By Christie Vanover | Published December 30, 2015 | Last Updated February 16, 2023
This is one of the most viewed recipes on my website because it’s easy, healthy and oh so delicious.
To start, grab some boneless skinless chicken breasts or tenders and dice them into even size pieces. Then, we can get to the secrets…
The first secret ingredient in grilled Chick-Fil-A nuggets is pickle juice
Simply, use the juice straight out of the jar from your favorite type of pickles. I recommend going with dill pickle juice, but if you prefer sweet or bread and butter pickles, go for it.
Be mindful that not all pickles and hence not all pickle juice is the same. Some have way more sodium than others. Check the label on the jar to make sure you don’t pick one that’s too salty.
Here is some info from the nutrition labels of some popular brands. This level of sodium is per ounce.
Heinz dill chips = 60 mg
Wickles Original Pickles = 150 mg
Vlasic dill spears = 220 mg
Mt Olive dill spears = 240 mg
Mt Olive dill chips = 290 mg
Claussen dill spears = 330 mg
Vlasic stackers = 410 mg
Brine the chicken
To create the brine, you’re going to combine the pickle juice with some milk. You can use whole or low-fat, depending on your diet. If you use a milk alternative like almond milk, just make sure it’s not flavored or sweetened.
Place the chicken nuggets in a bowl or zip top bag and pour the juice and milk right on top. Give it a gentle stir. The brine is the secret to making the nuggets extra juicy.
I don’t recommend marinating the nuggets for longer than 30 minutes, because too much brine time can make them too salty.
The second secret ingredient is powdered sugar
After the chicken brines for 30 minutes in the pickle juice and milk, you’ll rub it with the powdered sugar and other seasonings.
Adding the sugar to the dry rub helps create a nice crust on the nuggets and balances out the seasonings.
Don’t try this recipe with granulated or brown sugar. It won’t be the same.
Powdered sugar is usually combined with corn starch. That’s the component that gives the nuggets their nice texture.
When I first created this recipe in 2015, the rub was a little different. I included it in the recipe notes, if you’re interested.
Now, that I have my own award-winning Chicken Rub from Spiceology, I just mix two teaspoons of it with the powdered sugar.
How to grill copycat Chick-Fil-A nuggets
You can make these on any type of grill. I usually use a gas grill, because it’s such a quick cook, but you could also use a charcoal grill, pellet grill or even an indoor grill. Just heat the grill to high or about 400F degrees.
For juicy nuggets, you only need to grill them about 3 minutes per side.
Chicken is done when it reaches an internal temperature of 165F degrees.
Chick-Fil-A copycat honey mustard sauce
If you’re like me, you can’t have the nuggets without the sauce, so I’ve included my copycat version of Chick-Fil-A’s honey mustard dipping sauce below.
It uses mayo, two types of mustard, and of course honey. The touch of vinegar gives it the added pop. You could also use hot honey or add a dash of hot sauce, if you like a little heat.
How closely does this match the ingredients in actual grilled Chick-Fil-A nuggets?
This is a question I get asked a lot. So here you go. Below is the ingredients list straight from their website:
Chicken (boneless skinless chicken breast, water, apple cider vinegar, soybean oil, modified corn starch, salt, yeast extract, sugar, chicken breast meat, chicken broth, dehydrated onion, dehydrated garlic, sea salt, cane molasses, spices, chicken fat, natural flavor [including smoke], lemon peel, red bell pepper, paprika, lemon juice concentrate, parsley and vinegar solids, xanthan gum, and calcium disodium EDTA [to protect quality]).
The chicken breasts is an obvious match.
The water, vinegar, salt, onion, garlic, pepper and herbs are ingredients you’ll find in pickle juice, so that’s a close match.
They don’t list milk, so my brine recipe differs in that manner. If you have a dairy intolerance or just don’t want to use milk, you could follow their ingredients list more closely and substitute the milk with oil and chicken broth.
I like the milk, because it helps break down the chicken to make it tender, and based on the reviews this recipe gets, a lot of other people like it, too.
Lastly, you can see they list a variety of herbs, spices, sugar and cornstarch. That’s where powdered sugar rub comes in.
So there you go. Give the recipe a shot, and let me know what you think in the comments below.
Grilled Chick-Fil-A Nuggets
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup dill pickle juice
- 1/4 cup milk
- 2 tsp powdered sugar
- 2 tsp Christie Vanover's Chicken Rub
Instructions
- Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. Place in a bowl with pickle juice and milk. Marinate for 30 minutes.
- Remove from marinade and pat dry.
- In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar and Chicken Rub. Sprinkle all over chicken.
- Heat grill to high. Grill chicken for 3 minutes per side until cooked through.
- Serve with honey mustard dipping sauce.
Video
Notes
- 2 tsps powdered sugar
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp celery salt
Nutrition
This estimate was created using an online nutrition calculator
Copycat Chick-Fil-A Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp honey
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp yellow mustard
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
- Combine ingredients in a small bowl and chill.
Nutrition
This estimate was created using an online nutrition calculator
What percent milk did you use?
I usually use 2%, but you could use whole milk or 1%.
I made these with flaxmilk and whole earth monk fruit stevia and they turned out with great flavor. I baked them at 375 covered for 25min then turned over and covered again for another 25. Came out decent.
My question is can I use more than 1lb chicken for the brine or do I have to double the brine?
I’d like to make that for many recipes. Had this with roasted veggies but likely would be nice on a salad or rice and bean bowl.
Sounds like a nice twist. It will depend on how much more chicken you add. If you use 2 pounds, you might need a little more brine, unless you work in batches and reuse the brine.
There is no way cooking at 375 for 50 min turned out good! Cook lower and shorter time.
The prep time is 40 minutes and the cook time is 10 minutes.
Sounds really good home made..
Love them…but they’re a little salty. Will make it without adding salt to the rub next time. The salt from the brine is plenty for my liking.
I think you’re mistaken. Powdered sugar and pickle juice are used on the FRIED chicken. Grilled chicken is garlic and lemon juice, etc.
This recipe is so, SO good!! I am out of garlic powder and celery salt, so I poured a little garlic juice into the bag with the pickle juice and milk. I cooked mine just in a skillet with butter and a little apple cider vinegar (because we had some really tough pieces of chicken) and it is super delicious. Thanks for the great recipe!!
Thanks so much for taking the time to comment. I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Love them with the Polynesian sauce
I’ve used this recipe at least, 10 times, and it’s always awesome! I use tenders and doubled the amounts, as I feed many. Its identical to cfa.
My teenagers inhaled these! I set a timer for the brining phase, but it turned out a little salty; however, I suspect I cut my bites too small since I had to be careful placing them on the grill so they wouldn’t fall through the grate, so I probably should have brined for less than 30 minutes given the size of my chicken bites. I think this recipe would be also be great for grilling chicken breasts or tenderloins for salads and had planned to use the leftovers to try to recreate the Chic-fil-a market salad for my lunch tommorrow, but I didn’t have any leftovers with this recipe. Thanks so much for this great recipe – it is a keeper.
I followed the recipe completely but the finished product had a strong taste of the dill pickle juice. I marinated for 30 minutes using Clausen dill pickle juice. If I tried this again, I’d only use a third of the amount of pickle juice and add more milk.
You stated that you decreased the amount of salt. By how much??
The recipe used to call for 2 tsps salt. I have found that it depends on your pickle juice, too. Some brands are saltier than others.
I had to try this and it turned out great! I had cut my chicken into strips instead of nugget-sized bites, added 5 minutes to the brine time and they were fantastic. Not too salty or too bland.
Definitely going to make these again!
Thank you Megan and Faylore. I’m so glad you liked it. I love the idea of grilling tenders for salads.
Why is the milk needed? I don’t see it listed in the official ingredients list
The milk is part of the brine with the pickle juice. If you omit the milk, the pickle flavor will be too strong.
Doing the milk and pickle juice actually make it almost like butter milk but the pickle juice adds to the flavor as well
I was wondering this as well as the grilled chicken/nuggets from Chick Fil A are dairy free. I have a child with a dairy allergy and I’m wanting to find a good recipe similar to theirs because he inhales their chicken… but I need a dairy free recipe.
You could try diluting the pickle juice with water or chicken broth.
1/4 cup of milk is listed as one of the ingredients.
For the grilled nuggets? No. On their website it says it’s free of dairy. And my son has consumed them with no problem. The original nuggets do have dairy.
I am grilling on my stove top in a Frying pan.
Should I still cut them in bite size pieces because that will take a lot of time to turn each piece over?
Or should I cut them in small Patty size pieces so I can turn each piece easy and then cut them in bite size when they are done cooking?
You can definitely cook them in patties and then cut them later or eat the patty on a sandwich.
I have a dumb question…I don’t like dill pickles will the juice from sour pickles work? Maybe brine for 10-15 minutes? What do ya think?
Sure thing. You could even use bread and butter pickles.
I can’t have dairy, could I substitute the milk for maybe plant milk?
Hi Ashley, I haven’t tried that, but it should absolutely work. Let us know. I’m sure that would be a helpful tips for others. Christie
This was awesome, so good and exactly like the restaurant. I was hesitant about the pickle juice and milk marinate, but it turned out excellent. Will definitely cook again. Thanks!!!
Awesome! I’m so glad you liked them.
I worked at Chick-fil-A for a couple of years and there is pickle juice and milk in their brine.
Thanks for sharing.
Not in their grilled nuggets. They are dairy free.
If I don’t have powdered sugar, will it make a big difference or do I have to make a store run?
You could try regular sugar, but it might make it grainy. Do you have a spice grinder? You could try grinding regular sugar in the spice grinder to make it more fine.
Or maybe heat up the pickle juice to dissolve the regular sugar?
I made these for lunch but I think I put to much seasoning on them and they were super spicy. My daughter and I didn’t mind, they were super tender and delicious. My boys however didn’t like how spicy they were and passed. Next time I’ll cut back. :)
Glad you enjoyed them. Did you adjust the seasoning blend? There are no spicy seasonings used in the recipe.
The pepper has to be off – way spicy (and I typically like peppered products.)
Thank you so so much for this recipe ! My two year old son will only consistently eat hot dogs and Chick fil A grilled nuggets, and the closest Chick fil A is an hour away! This will be a keeper in this house. I had it wrapped up with cheese lettuce and tomato and chipotle Mayo and it was super delish. I do see what the previous commenter was saying about it being spicy, next time i will double the chicken (leftovers will not last long with this) and keep the seasoning blend the same. Mine was kind of salty and too much celery seed as i did not have celery salt so i substituted celery seed and a little extra salt. Next time I’ll cut that back. But thank you so much , i can finally get my child to eat more meat haha
Thanks so much for sharing. Glad your kiddo enjoyed it.
I’m following the Keto diet and I’m wondering if the powdered sugar is absolutely necessary to the outcome of the nuggets. Other than that, it’s a very keto-friendly recipe.
It won’t turn out exactly the same, but you can skip the powdered sugar and still end up with some good nuggets.
I’m on keto so i used stevia. They turned out great.
Thanks for the feedback. Others doing keto will be glad to know it worked.
My Keto friends all swear by erythritol granulated and confectioner “sugar”. Now that I’m doing WW, I decided to try it and LOVE it. It is a sugar alcohol (erythritol) but naturally is produced in some fruits and vegetables. The most popular brand is Swerve, but a search on Amazon will turn up more affordable erythritol options.
I soaked it in the brine x 30 mins, and then let the seasonings stay on overnight. I made two pounds of chicken so I doubled the recipe. It came it tasting VERY strong and over seasoned! I probably shouldn’t let it sit over night…uugh.
There is no need to let the rub sit overnight. That brine is pretty powerful stuff. After 30 minutes in the marinade, just season and toss on the grill. You can also cut back on the rub, if you prefer. I hope you give the recipe another shot.
You could try using Swerve confectioners.
These were good as F. My wife made some regular ol’ baked chicken and I told her I was going to try to do something different. After she tasted the chicken I made she didn’t even bother finishing her chicken.
Genuinely the best recipe I’ve ever found on the internet. I will use this recipe until I die, so thanks for this.
You’re so kind. Thanks so much. I’m thrilled you enjoyed them.
I am trying this for the first time tonight…I’m hoping this will reheat good for meal preps. I didn’t cut my chicken into small pieces because I didn’t want to lose any to the grill. Other than that wish me luck.
Just made them and the only complaint was from my 5 year old… But they’re not in the Chick-fil-A box!!! 🤦♀️
Can I use vinegar or apple cider vinegar instead of the pickle juice?
I haven’t tried it, but you could give it a shot. Or you could make a brine with apple cider vinegar, water and sugar.
This recipe turned out great! My hubby even took the leftovers to work in the morning.
That’s a true sign of a good dish :) Thanks.
How long would I cook these on a George Foreman grill?
Probably around 5 minutes.
In the Nutrition facts, total fat is 14 gms. Is that coming from the Dipping Sauce??
Yes. That fat count is because of the mayo in the dipping sauce.
The allergens on chick fil a doesn’t contain dairy though? How do they do it without milk?
Hmmm. Maybe they just use water or broth.
What type of paprika do you use?
I usually used smoked paprika.
We don’t have any pickles on hand but do have olives. Could I use olive brine instead?
The flavor would be different, but the concept would be the same.
Can you use more than 1lb chicken?
Sure.
I know why the other reviews said it was a bit spicy.I didn’t have any celery seed but it was still delicious !!!!!!
Delicious. I cooked mine in the microwave using a Rangemate (3 minutes each side) and it was perfect. No messy cleanup and super easy. Thanks for the recipe.
Are the nutrition facts for this the same as Chick Fil A’s nuggets? Since the info you provided is with the sauce, I’m curious to know what the macros are without the sauce.
What are the nutrition facts without the sauce? I count macros and would probably eat this without the sauce.
I just broke the recipe into two parts to separate the calories for the sauce and the chicken. I hope this helps.
Family loved this! I did find it pretty spicy too, not sure if is the pepper or celery salt? Thanks!!
I am curious if anyone has tried these in the air fryer?
Strong flavor. I will definitely leave the chicken less time marinating and use way less salt and pepper for the seasoning. Too strong for my toddler
These came out absolutely delicious. No changes to the recipe. My hubby begged me to make them again to out in lunch salads.
Thanks for the great feedback.
Going to try them.I m going to follow step by step i hope you are not bullshiting me on this recipe.
Waaaaaaaaaay too salty for us! Even the dog would not touch them. I think that marinating them in the pickle juice and milk makes them salty enough.
Hey is there anything else I can use except pickle juice. Could I marinate in them in limes for the acidity ?
Limes would give this dish an entirely different taste. If you want it to taste like chick-fil-a, you’ll need to use the pickle juice. Sorry.
Thank you for yummy recipe.
Can you reheat these in a microwave?
Would love to make these for my work lunch!
Sure. They would taste a little better re-heated in a toaster oven, but a microwave will work.
I can my own pickles. We like them a tad spicy, so usually cut up a jalapeño in it. I used the juice from that. Also it’s cold outside, and I don’t have an indoor grill, so I pulled out the George foreman. I grilled the chicken whole breasts (I flattened them before marinating) then cut them into bite size after grilling. I mixed honey mustard sauce with BBQ sauce equal parts for the dipping sauce. YUM! Love chick fla la, but not the price lol, I will be making this often! Thanks
Is it ok to marinade longer than the 30 minutes? Would like to prep before work.
I don’t recommend marinating for more than 30 minutes. If you do, they will be really salty.
I made this following the recipe, but I cooked in cast iron skillet because it was late. That’s the only improvement I can see, actually grilling the chicken. Otherwise, it was great! It is a little salty, and I’m a salt lover. You could probably dial it back a bit. I used Whole Foods dill pickles, next time I will use one with a stronger pickle-y taste, like Vlassic or Mt Olive. The Whole Food dills were pretty weak.
It’s a good marinade/rub, and my kids still really liked them, but to me they just didn’t taste like Chickfila. They were also way salty even though we didn’t marinate them in the pickle juice that long. I workout quite a bit and love Chickfila grilled nuggets for a quick protein boost, so I was really hoping these would be a good alternative. They’re not bad, just not quite Chickfila.
Perfect! We love Chick Fil A bit can’t go because our daughter is so severely allergic to peanuts and peanut oil. This was a perfect way to get the chicken for everyone. It tastes delicious.
How many nuggets are a serving?
Made these for the first time tonight, they were awesome! We love Chick-fil-A nuggets so we’re excited that we can make them at home. Will you skim milk here so that’s the quarter cup that I used with a pickle juice. And when I made the honey mustard dipping sauce I had everything but the regular mustard, But it was still great!
Not a Grill Master so are you just using aluminum foil to prevent these bite size pieces from falling into the grill?
I cut mine into strips! So yummy!
Would you recommend air frying these? Our grill is currently out of commission. How long and at what temp would be good on the air fryer!
Sorry. I don’t have an air fryer, so I’m not sure.
I’ve done 8 oz @ 400 degrees for about 8-12 minutes in the air fryer, I would say 1lb @ 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes.
Great recipe! I used it for chicken then I decide to try using it on Mahi Mahi fillets cut into nugget size pieces and following the same process. They turned out fantastic as well. I am keto so I opted to use Swerve confections for the sugar. The taste is CFA yummy and I love having another seasoning for my Mahi Mahi as well. Thanks so much!
Ok….as a Chick-fil-A connoisseur, these didn’t taste identical BUT…holy moly were so close and SO GOOD!!!!! A smidge on the peppery side for us but, that’s a personal preference and it was handled with our use of CFA sauce and nonfat greek yogurt (sour cream) as dips. These were soooo yummy!!! I used a 4 pack of chicken from Walmart at 3lbs so I tripled the seasonings and doubled the liquids. Worked great! I made them as strips as to not have any lost pieces in my grill LOL! Have enough leftovers for dinner tomorrow! Wahoo! Thanks for sharing this recipe! Now to share with all my friends LOL
Noob question, why did you only double the liquids instead of tripling them?
Better than chick fil a grilled chicken nuggets I used whole milk and was super delicious and tender!!!
Delicious but spicy. Do you think I could rinse the extra brine off before adding the spices?
Sure.
First time in my life seeing tsps. That’s so stupid. No need to pluralize more than one tsp. 🙄
Wow you took the time out of your day to make fun of my typo and call me stupid. Multiple people initially complained this recipe was too salty, so I reduced the salt content down to 1 tsp. I simply forgot to change tsps to tsp when I made that edit. While I edit this post, may I suggest you edit your look on life and try to be a little more kind to people.
Made it exactly as-is, multiple times, it’s amazing. My kids love it just as much and we pair it with homemade honey mustard. Seriously simple.
I like to cook them on skewers to keep it simple for flipping. Just make sure the grates are oiled otherwise the sugar will make them stick.
Homerun recipe!
Thanks so much Brad!!
Everyone who has this copycat recipe uses milk. The Chic-Fil-A website states there are no milk allergens in their nuggets, and my son, who has severe milk allergies but loves Chic-Fil-A chicken nuggets is testament to the fact that there is no milk in Chic-Fil-A chicken nuggets. I don’t think your recipe needs milk.
These nuggets are life changing! The flavor is on point and they fit perfectly with our dietary needs. We have made three batches in a little over a week. It’s nice to have these on hand for wraps, salads, rice/veggie bows or as an entree. I’ve shared this recipe with my WW meeting, the WW online forum and friends and family. Thank you for a great recipe.
Thank you Kim. I’m so glad you like them, and I really appreciate that you’ve shared it.
Christie Vanover thank you for posting this recipe for us it looks good .