These oven-baked chicken nuggets without breadcrumbs skip the breading entirely: no flour dredge, no egg wash, no cornflake coating. Just ground chicken and sweet potato blended together in a food processor, shaped into nuggets, and baked until golden. They hold together on their own. 21 grams of protein per serving. Kids have no idea there’s a vegetable in them.
They’re gluten-free, dairy-free, Whole30, and Paleo. And they’re the recipe I come back to on the weeks when I need dinner to handle itself.
Love easy chicken recipes? Try pesto chicken, crispy garlic chicken bites, or air fryer bacon wrapped chicken breast next.
One thing worth knowing upfront: these nuggets have a different texture than a breaded nugget. They’re tender and dense, more like a chicken meatball in nugget shape than a crispy fast-food nugget. That’s the sweet potato binder doing its job. If you want them crispier, the broil tip at the end of the baking step is not optional.
What makes these worth making: they go from ingredients to table in under 30 minutes, freeze beautifully for weeknight emergencies, and work for Whole30, Gluten-Free, Paleo, and dairy-free diets all at once. Make a double batch. Freeze half. Future you will thank you.
Ingredients You Need
Five ingredients total. Everything except the ground chicken is probably already in your pantry or spice drawer. Here’s what you need to make these baked chicken nuggets without breadcrumbs!
- Ground chicken: the base of this recipe and the source of the 21 grams of protein per serving. Unlike a breaded chicken breast nugget that adds protein from bulk, the ground form gives you a naturally dense, protein-forward nugget without any filler.
- Sweet potato: this is the secret healthy ingredient that binds the nuggets together! You can’t even taste it but it makes these healthy chicken nuggets paleo and Whole30.
- Tapioca flour (or arrowroot starch): this is a ground powder similar to cornstarch that helps find everything. It’s easy to find in the baking aisle with the rest of the flour:
- Spices: onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper.
How These Nuggets Hold Together Without Breadcrumbs
These chicken nuggets stay together without breadcrumbs because the sweet potato and starch act as natural binders.
The sweet potato adds moisture and structure once baked. The tapioca or arrowroot starch absorbs excess liquid from the ground chicken and helps the mixture firm up in the oven. When blended together, the mixture becomes cohesive and slightly sticky, which is exactly what you want before shaping.
If the mixture feels wet, that is normal. Once baked to 165°F, the nuggets set and hold their shape without any traditional breading.
How to Make Chicken Nuggets without Breadcrumbs
Here’s how to make them. The food processor does most of the work.
Mix the ingredients: Combine all of the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor for about 1 minute or until the mixture starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
Shape into nuggets: Use a tablespoon to scoop out the mixture and place them ½ inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Use your hands to form them into nugget shapes you should end up with about 20 nuggets. Arrange them in a single layer on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
Tip: The mixture is sticky. That’s correct. Wet hands are your best tool here dip your fingers in water between each nugget and the shaping goes fast.
Bake and serve: Bake at 400°F for 18 to 20 minutes, turning halfway through. The nuggets should be golden on the outside and reach 165°F inside. Don’t skip the broil. Set the oven to broil for the last two minutes; this is what gets the outside from “cooked” to “golden.”
Note on texture: because the binder here is sweet potato and starch (not breadcrumbs), the inside stays soft and dense even when the outside browns. This is expected. Broiling at the end adds crispiness. See the tip in the instructions.
Want to make your own dipping sauce? Try healthy ranch dressing, whole30 bbq sauce, or 3-minute homemade honey mustard.
Need a side dish? Our kids love them with french fries or sweet potato fries. We love them with a kale apple salad or roasted broccoli and carrots.
Air Fryer Instructions
These also work in the air fryer and come out slightly crispier. Preheat to 400°F for five minutes. Arrange nuggets in a single layer don’t stack or they’ll steam instead of crisp. Air fry for 15 to 18 minutes, flipping halfway, until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Check early if your nuggets are smaller than a tablespoon scoop.
Recipe FAQs
You can bake chicken nuggets in the oven, air fry them, or use a toaster oven. Ensure they’re cooked to 165°F or warmed all the way through if they’re frozen.
Chicken nuggets, like the ones you find at fast food restaurants, are breaded and fried. In contrast, something like Asian-inspired orange chicken has more of a batter.
Yes, you can cook any chicken nugget recipe in the air fryer. Preheat the air fryer to 400°F for 5 minutes. Add the chicken nuggets and air fry at 400 for 15-18 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Flip halfway through. Cook time will vary depending on the size and shape of the chicken nugget.
Use a binder. In this recipe, finely grated sweet potato and starch replace breadcrumbs. The key is blending the mixture until cohesive and baking until the internal temperature reaches 165°F so the proteins fully set.
Because sweet potato and starch create a softer interior than breadcrumbs do. This is expected they’re not a traditional breaded nugget. To get more texture on the outside: make sure the oven is fully preheated, give each nugget space on the pan (no touching), and broil for two minutes at the end.
Yes, but it takes more effort. Finely grate the sweet potato on a box grater, then mix everything by hand in a bowl until fully combined. The mixture won’t be as smooth, but the nuggets will still hold together.
Each serving of five nuggets has 21 grams of protein from the ground chicken.
Yes, ground chicken, sweet potato, tapioca starch, and spices are all Whole30 compliant. Just check that your specific brand of tapioca or arrowroot starch has no added ingredients.
Storage Instructions
Store leftover chicken nuggets in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
To freeze, flash freeze on a sheet pan until solid, then transfer them to an airtight container or freezer bag and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Warm from frozen in the oven, microwave, or air fryer.
Pro tip: these reheat best in the air fryer or oven. The microwave works but the texture softens further. Two minutes in the air fryer at 375°F brings them back to close to fresh.
If you make this recipe, I’d love for you to give it a star rating ★ below. You can also tag me on Instagram so I can see it!
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Oven Baked Chicken Nuggets Without Breadcrumbs
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Ingredients
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 2 cups finely grated or chopped sweet potatoes (1 medium-large sweet potato)
- 2 tablespoons tapioca flour, arrowroot starch or cornstarch
- 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 teaspoon EACH: paprika, garlic powder, and kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or spray with olive oil spray. Set aside.
- Add all of the ingredients to the bowl of a food processor. Blend on high for 30 seconds to 1 minute or until the mixture is combined and starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl.1 lb ground chicken, 2 cups finely grated or chopped sweet potatoes, 2 tablespoons tapioca flour, arrowroot starch or cornstarch, 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder, 1 teaspoon EACH: paprika, garlic powder, and kosher salt
- Use a tablespoon to scoop out the mixture and place ½ inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. Use your hands to form the mixture into chicken nugget shapes. You should have about 18-21 chicken nuggets. The mixture will be wet and sticky. Dip your fingers in water to keep them from sticking while you shape the nuggets.
- Bake chicken nuggets in the preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, turning halfway through, until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Broil for the last 2 minutes for a crispier exterior.
- Cool slightly and serve with your favorite sauce like sugar-free ketchup, BBQ sauce, honey mustard or sriracha.
Notes
Video
Equipment
- Food Processor
- Large baking sheet
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Can you make this with regular potatoes? My daughter hates sweeg potatoes with a fiery passion 😆
Hi Mackenzie! I haven’t tested this recipe with regular potatoes but I think it should work. Just make sure they’re finely grated so they blend smoothly with the chicken. It may be less flavorful as well – but let me know how it goes!
Don’t use parchment paper and broil…..Well after catching my oven on fire for putting it on broil and the parchment paper became a fire mess. The ones that did not taste like burnt parchment paper were good. My daughter didn’t eat them(she’s 2)
Hi Amanda! I’m so sorry this happened. I did not have this issue and I’ve used parchment paper several times for this recipe. Are you sure you didn’t use wax paper on accident? That is definitely not flame resistant. I would suggest using olive oil spray next time.
This recipe is a fam staple! I appreciate the healthy alternative.
Love it when we make it into the rotation! Thanks Bri!
My husband and I did not like these and ended up throwing them out. The consistency was strange and not as I was expecting. Although I appreciate the effort to make healthy, they just didn’t taste like chicken nuggets. Not worth the effort, in my opinion.
Sounds like this recipe just wasn’t for you, Angela! I find them to be delicious, so no worries!
Kids loved but how can I make it less sponge like and crispier?
Hey there! I didn’t have this problem! You could try broiling at the end?
Better than I was expecting, although a bit heavy on the spices I think. At least I can say they weren’t bland, lol. Next time I’m going to use less garlic & onion powder. I didn’t think it was exactly rubbery, though it was spongy and chewy since it’s ground up chicken, of course you’re going to get that texture. Good healthy alternative if you’re craving fast food nuggies!
This recipe is so delicious! Thank you so much! Even my picky son enjoys these. The only unhealthy substitution i did was replace the tapioca flour with regular flour and cornstarch.
I followed the recipe exactly as written. I made one batch with sweet potatoes and one batch with russet potatoes. They both cooked perfectly and turned out the robbery consistency I would expect that was similar to a McDonalds chicken nugget.
But the taste was horrendous. A very strange aftertaste and I’ve had many recipes made with tapioca flour and the other spices. Neither one of us could finish them and they went into the bin.
Hey Cheri! This is really interesting. They’ve always turned out tender and perfect for us. We’ve made these several times. We have a video on our youtube to show you exactly how we make them and what the texture is like. The ingredients are really simple and the spices are standard so they shouldn’t have a funny after taste! Maybe some of your spices are expired?
These are amazing! So easy and delicious! So excited to have found this recipe! Thank you Molly x
Super! I love those pictures…so tempting.
I love chicken nuggets but i use corn flour instead of tapioca flour. Could that be a reason mine is so sticky and difficult to mold?