These Red Lentil Chicken Nuggets are made with a combination of red lentils and ground chicken. They’re kid-friendly and easy to make for a weeknight dinner.

Hi friends!

I’m excited to share these Red Lentil Chicken Nuggets to kick off the new year. Over the past several weeks I’ve been working to reduce my meat intake. I’m not interested in eliminating it completely but I am cutting back. For me, one of the easiest ways to do this is to make my meals with a combination of plant and animal proteins.

A perfect example is a recipe I recently shared over on Instagram for Chicken and Chickpea Noodle Soup. Instead of making my standard chicken noodle soup, I replaced half the chicken with a can of chickpeas. This gives me the benefit of adding plant protein to my meal! But it’s less overwhelming than a 100% vegetarian meal.

I used the same approach with these Red Lentil Chicken Nuggets. Combining red lentils with ground chicken tastes more like a nugget my kids are used to eating. But combining stretches the chicken into more nuggets thanks to the lentils. It’s an easy way to add another plant-based protein source to my kids’ meal.

Here’s how you make them:

Red Lentil Chicken Nuggets

These Red Lentil Chicken Nuggets are made with a combination of red lentils and ground chicken. They’re kid-friendly and easy to make for a weeknight dinner.

Author: Lindsay
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 15 min
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 25-30 nuggets 1x

Scale

Ingredients

1 pound ground chicken
1/4 cup dry red lentils (about 3/4 cup cooked)
1 egg
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp paprika
1.5 cups panko breadcrumbs for coating (more if needed)

Instructions

Cook red lentils. (I put mine in a pan with water, cover, bring to a boil, crack the lid and reduce to simmer or 5 min and then drain).
Put the lentils in a food processor and pulse several times.
Add chicken, egg and spices and process until combined.
Place panko breadcrumbs on a plate or in a dish.
Take chicken mixture one tablespoon at a time. Roll in breadcrumbs and form into nugget shape. (Depending on size you should get 25-30 nuggets)
Bake at 400 for 13-15 minutes, flipping halfway, or until thermometer inserted into a stack of nuggets registers 165 degrees F.

Using a food processor makes combining the chicken and lentils a breeze. Even though forming the nuggets takes a little time, it’s easy and perfection isn’t required. To cut down on prep time you could cut the recipe in half. This would make fewer nuggets. Use the other half pound of chicken for something else!

If you’re feeling adventurous, you could add some shredded carrots or zucchini or other veggies to the food processor.