Keto Stuffed Chicken Nuggets
Mozzarella surrounded by chicken and rolled in Panko Pork Rinds. Make ahead and keep in the freezer to cook up a few at a time or to have a ready-to-cook meal.
This recipe is husband approved when he enthusiastically responds without asking, I know we have a winner.
Comfort Food
While on a journey to total wellness, healthy food choices are essential. A tendency to find issues in how one selects their meals becomes apparent. Using food as an emotional response can lead to unhealthy decisions. Being able to have healthy options that still taste like their high carb counterpart but maintain a level of health is essential as we work through how we respond to food.
Ground Chicken
Ground chicken is not always an easy find in stores, no worries, you can create your own. Cut raw chicken breasts into 1-2 inch cubes. Place cubes into the food processor. Using the pulse feature, pulse breasts about 6-10 times until you have perfectly ground chicken. *Make certain NOT to process the meat, simply pulse.
Ground chicken is great for multiple recipes because it binds to itself. If you’ve ever seen chicken nugget shapes, this is how they achieve them. Other uses for ground chicken include meatballs and meatloaf. Buffalo Chicken meatloaf is a personal favorite.
Pork Panko Coating
Pork Panko is brand of ground pork rinds, ready to use in recipes. You do not need to purchase for this recipe.
Pork Rinds with sea salt or plain coating can but used.
To make your own pork panko, fill a blender or food processor about half-full with pork rinds. Using the pulse option, pulse 3-4 times until all large rinds are the size of bread crumbs. Repeat until all pork rinds are now crumbs. Store in an air-tight bag or container for recipes.
Seasonings
In this recipe, I use Italian seasoning because we love to dip in a sugar-free pizza sauce. You can easily omit the seasoning or change it up with garlic, dill, onion powder, salt and pepper for a ranch flavoring. Be creative, make what you like.
Keto Stuffed Chicken Nuggets
Equipment
- Oven
Ingredients
- 1.25 lb Ground Chicken May use 1 lb chicken breast, ground in food processor
- 2 Tbsp Italian Seasonings
- 8 ounces Mozzarella Cheese Cubed into 16 rectangles
- 2 cup Pork Panko Crumbs or Plain pork rinds pulsed in food processor until size of bread crumbs
- 1-2 large Eggs Slightly beaten
- 1/2 cup Heavy Cream
- 1 pinch Redmond's Real Salt season to taste.
- 1/2 tbsp Fresh cracked pepper seasoned to taste
Instructions
- Mix italian seasoning in a bowl with ground chicken. Set aside
- Cut mozzarella into 16 rectangular cubes
- Form 1.5 inch ball of ground chicken, press around cheese, making certain no cheese is showing.Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat until all cheese is coverd and no chicken remains.
- Place entire baking sheet with chicken nuggets in freezer for 30 min to an hour.
- Add Pork Panko to bowl, season with salt and pepper, using a fork, mix until well incorporated. In a separate bowl, add eggs, mix with a fork until slightly beaten, add heavy whipping cream and whisk to incorporate well.
- Remove nuggets from the freezer, 1 at a time, coat nugget in egg mixture then roll in breading. Return to baking sheet. Repeat with remaingin nuggets.
- Freeze for 15 minutes
- Bake nuggets at 425° for 30 minutes, flipping over after 15 minutes.
Notes
Wellness Journey Thoughts
I’m not a stranger to emotional eating. The ease in which I allowed myself to turn to food instead of God happened so often, it took a long time to realize.
Fatigue and stress lead to ordering out pizza or tacos. Sadness prompted leaning to sweets or baked goods. Having adrenal issues meant stacking sweet and salty until I felt worse than before jumping to food.
It’s important to know that you cannot shame yourself out of emotional eating. Controlling our response to food is like a muscle, it takes time to condition and strengthen. Identifying a reaction to reach for food in place of turning to God allows us to put food in its proper place and clear the way for God to fix what we need.
” So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for God ” 1 Corinthians 10:31
When we identify that what we consume is for God, it allows us to identify that food cannot fix what only God can do.
