Chicken Nuggets

My son loves chicken nuggets. We used to go to Chick Fil-A about once a week for them, but I worry about the health consequences of fried food and all that MSG that may be adding to his dyslexia. They put MSG in the chicken and in the breading!

I decided to make our own chicken nuggets, trying to get the flavor close to what he likes. My book "Charcuterie" really helped - because it taught me about brining! When you soak meat in a salt solution (or rub it with salt) the salt is drawn into the protein of the meat, plumping the cells and making the meat more juicy and tender. That's why a lot of processed meat says on the label it has water added. But whatever is in with the salt is also drawn into the meat, so brining is a way to pull seasonings and flavor deep inside the meat (think ham, here). A typical brining solution might have equal parts sugar to salt, the sugar offsets the saltiness and adds more flavor, plus people just like that sweet flavor.

To use herbs and seasonings in a brine, it works best if you first boil some water and make a tea of them, to extract the flavor into the water. Add the salt and sugar and once it has cooled your brine solution is ready for the meat.

I always brine in glass containers, because I don't like the odor soaking into plastic bowls and I don't want to worry something in the plastic is dissolving into the meat. I find a glass loaf pan works really well for chicken breast meat.

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
2 cups of water
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp sage
1/4 tsp rosemary
1/4 tsp marjoram
1/4 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp nutmeg
2 tbsp salt
1-2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp oil for frying - I use bacon grease or butter but you can use olive oil if you prefer

Bring the 2 cups of water to a boil and add the thyme, garlic, sage, rosemary, marjoram, pepper and nutmeg. Let boil for 1 minute then remove from heat and add honey and salt. Stir until the salt dissolves or it can leave pocks in the bottom of the pot.

Let it cool to room temperature.

Cut the chicken into 1" chunks (or you can leave them whole for barbecue). Put it in a glass container and pour in the brine, moving the chicken around to remove any air pockets. The chicken should be submerged in the brine. If it is not, you may need to use a smaller container.

Cover and refrigerate for several hours to overnight. It works best with more time to brine, but that requires thinking ahead. You can freeze this but after several weeks the flavor changes and it's not so appealing.

To Cook: Heat oil in a frying pan and add enough chicken to make a single layer. Let it cook until one side is browned then turn and repeat until all the sides are browned.

My kids like to eat this with toothpicks like an appetizer. It doesn't need any dipping sauce but if they really must dip it, you can make honey mustard by combining 2 parts mustard to 1 part honey.

This is also a great finger food for parties.