It will be hard to go back to shop bought frozen nuggets after you have tasted these. You can skip the marinating stage if you don’t have time but it does add a delicious flavour to the chicken. Frying the nuggets gives the best results but the oven method also works. Adding a little oil to the crumbs helps the baking quite a lot. You can vary the marinade flavourings, for example use 1/2 tsp dried oregano or thyme, and add paprika, cayenne or Tabasco sauce if you like a bit of spice.

You will need:

200g chicken breasts
100 ml milk, plus 1 tbsp for dipping
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
45 g Kellogg's Rice Krispies
15 g mature Cheddar cheese, finely grated
1 tbsp grated Parmesan
1 egg
4 tbsp plain flour
3–4 tbsp sunflower oil, for frying
salt and black pepper, to season

Method

Cut the chicken breasts into 1.5 cm cubes and put in a bowl. Mix together the milk, garlic, thyme, lemon juice, 1/4 tsp salt and some black pepper (the mixture will separate a little from the lemon juice but this is OK), and pour over the chicken. Cover, and leave to marinade in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight.

Put the Rice Krispies in a food processor and whiz for 1–2 minutes, until reduced to fine crumbs. Add the cheeses plus salt and pepper to taste, and whiz to combine. Transfer to a large plate. Whisk the egg in a small bowl with the tablespoon of milk. Mix the flour with a little salt and pepper, and spread out on a large plate.

Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade, shaking off any excess. Toss in the seasoned flour then dip in the egg and roll in the Rice Krispie coating. Put the oil in a large non-stick pan over a medium heat. Fry the nuggets for 2–3 minutes each side, until golden and crisp. Drain on kitchen paper and cool slightly before serving.

Information
Prep time 20 mins plus marinating time
Cooking time 12 minutes
4 portions

Oven method

If you would like an alternative to frying, pre-heat the oven to 200ºC/ 400ºF/Gas 6/Fan 180ºC. Reduce the oil f to two tablespoons. Add one tablespoon to the Kellogg's Rice Krispie crumbs with the cheese and whiz to combine evenly (you may need to stop and stir a couple of times as the oil can clump a bit). Grease a baking sheet with the remaining tablespoon of oil. Coat the chicken (as above) and put on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes, turning over half-way through.

To freeze put uncooked, coated chicken fingers on baking sheet lined with clingfilm. Cover with more clingfilm and freeze until solid then transfer to a re-sealable box or freezer bag. Cook direct from frozen, adding 1 minute extra cooking time for frying and 3-4 minutes extra for baking.