Grilled Chick-Fil-A Nuggets

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 mixture 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, 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 or grill pan. Just heat the grill to high or about 400F degrees. 

For juicy nuggets, you only need to grill them about 3 minutes per side.

PRO TIP: 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.

Not a fan of honey mustard? Then dip your grilled nuggets in your favorite BBQ sauce.

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 the taste of 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.

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Storage

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days. You can also freeze leftover chicken. Cooking extra is great for protein snacks or to toss on salads.

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More Grilled Chicken Recipes

Want to make grilled chicken sandwiches? Follow this same technique, but instead of making nuggets, pound the chicken breasts so they are an even thickness and follow all the same steps.

Serve them on a bun with green leaf lettuce, slices of tomato and colby jack cheese.

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