I first made these Homemade Veggie Nuggets many years ago for a dinner party with another couple. The wife in the couple is a vegetarian and so while I wanted to make chicken nuggets for the crew, I had to figure out a vegetarian version as well!
This recipe was the result and it has since become a complete staple. I actually prefer to chicken nuggets a lot of the time because it’s packed with healthy veggies and is super colorful and flavorful.
Even the most adamant chicken nugget lover won’t be able to resist these deep-fried vegetable nuggets!
Homemade Veggie Nuggets Video
Preparing the Vegetables
I had never made these before, but I figured the method could probably be similar to the chicken nuggets. I knew I wanted to start with lots of colorful, fresh vegetables.
I just roughly chopped up all these things.
For my chicken nuggets, I add in an egg and some flour as a binder for the nuggets, but for this veggie nuggets version, I added in a few potatoes which I thought would be enough binder to keep it all together.
Blanch these vegetables in salted, boiling water. They will need different times so don’t just toss them all in together. The broccoli will cook quickly, maybe 2-3 minutes, while the other vegetables will need closer to ten minutes.
The finished blanched vegetables should be fork-tender.
Making the Nugget Mixture
At this point, these homemade veggie nuggets are pretty easy IF you have a food processor.
If you don’t have a processor and want to try them out, your best bet is to mash the veggies together with a potato masher. Or you could try grating them on a box grater.
A food processor makes quick work of it though. Just pulse everything together including the Serrano pepper and salt and pepper.
This was my finished, very colorful mixture!
Making the Veggie Nuggets
The mixture will stick together at this point, but it’s fragile. I wouldn’t recommend shaping the nuggets right away.
Instead, spread the mixture out on a baking sheet in an even thickness.
Stick the baking sheet in the freezer for 15-20 minutes. You don’t want it to be frozen solid, but you want it pretty cold and solid.
Then use a small cookie cutter to cut out your nuggets!
Once the nuggets are cut out, dip them in egg followed by Italian bread crumbs.
These were my finished little nuggets.
At this point you have two options:
Freeze them! Just place all the breaded nuggets on a clean baking sheet and let them freeze completely. Then transfer them to a freezer safe bag and they will store fine for months.
Fry them! If you want to cook them immediately though, just dunk them in a fryer with 350 degree F. oil. They will cook quickly and only need 3-4 minutes to get golden brown.
Can you bake these Veggie Nuggets?
You absolutely can bake these if you don’t have access to a fryer. After you bread them, lay them out on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. They will probably need to bake at 350-400 degrees F. for 15-20 minutes to get nice and crispy.
Frying them is the way to go though if you can.
When they come out, don’t forget to season them with some salt right away.
Serve them with a sauce of your choice!
These homemade veggie nuggets are super-crispy on the outside and slightly sweet when you bite into them (probably because of the beet).
I have to say, these gave my normal chicken nuggets a run for their money.
They were seriously awesome. I think the fact that they are completely veggie-packed makes up for the fact that they are fried. You could do worse than eat these for dinner with a side salad or something!
Make a big batch of these, freeze them, and then skip the freezer fake nuggets for the next shopping trip!
These vegetable nuggets are an awesome weekend cooking project and a great way to introduce tons of vegetables to your kids!
Crispy Homemade Veggie Nuggets
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2-3 medium carrots
- 1 parsnip
- 2 small new potatoes
- 1 golden beet
- 1 stalk broccoli
- 1 Serrano pepper, seeded
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Frying:
- 2 cups Italian Bread crumbs
- 3 large eggs
- 1 quart oil for frying
Instructions
- Chop carrots, parsnip, new potatoes, golden beet, and broccoli into one-inch chunks. Bring a pot of salted water to a simmer and blanch all the veggies until tender. I recommend blanching the broccoli separately from the others. The sturdier veggies will take about 10 minutes to soften, while the broccoli will take 2-3 minutes.
- Drain the veggies and add them to a food process along with the Serrano pepper, olive oil, salt and pepper. Pulse the mixture until it’s mostly smooth.
- Transfer the pulsed veggie mixture to a baking sheet and spread it out into about a 1/2 inch thick layer. Transfer baking sheet to freezer and let freeze for 15-20 minutes until the mixture is hard, but not completely frozen.
- Use a cookie cutter to cut shapes out of the cooled veggie mixture.
- In two small bowls, whisk together the eggs in one and measure out the bread crumbs in a second one. After you cut out the shapes, dip them in the eggs and then in the breadcrumb mixture.
- At this point you can either add the breaded nuggets to a baking sheet and freeze them and then transfer them to a freezer safe bag. They will keep great for months.
- Or you can fry the nuggets immediately by heating oil to 350 degrees F. Once the oil is hot, fry the nuggets until they are golden brown, about 3-4 minutes. Then transfer the nuggets to a paper towel to drain.
- Serve the nuggets while warm with ketchup and a sprinkle of salt.
Jessica L.
This is awesome! My bf LOVES frozen vegetarian corn dogs, but spending so much money for fake meat kinda grosses me out. I’ll definitely have to give these a shot!
Jen
Can you please share your vegetarian corn dog recipe please :)
Nick
Hey Jen, I don’t think Jessica was mentioning a specific recipe but actually just the frozen veg corn dogs you can buy at the supermarket… like: https://www.morningstarfarms.com/products/details/morningstar-farms-veggie-corn-dogs-product.html
Devon
I bet if you made the same recipe for these nuggets but shaped them into a roll and then froze them so they would hold their shape, then dropped them in a simple batter instead of the breading you could just turn these into “corn dogs”
Helene Lopes
I’m going to try this. One of the grand kids (age 6) is a picky carnivore who has gotten away from veggies and the other is a vegetarian (age 3) who eats meatballs, try cooking for them everyday. what a challenge. The saving grace is that they both like PBJ toast.
Nick
Yikes. Tough crowd. :) Hope they like these!
Becky
IKEA has WONDERFUL veggie meatballs… and you can google search making your own “IKEA” meatballs :-) I like the idea of these nuggets … and LOVE the fact that you tried it without using egg… for the breading, perhaps a quick dunk in coconut cream or cashew cream?? wondering… will have to try.
I’m trying to validate the possible future purchase of one of those air fryers… this recipe is the start of a very dangerous path!
Thanks!
joy
Becky,
my son has an egg/nut allergy, i make flax egg once weekly and keep a small container of it in a Tupperware container in refrigerator. It works fantastic for adhering crumbs to nuggets etc.( also for baking ) important trick when not using actual egg, let the crumb mixture set for about 10 mins or more before frying.
also i strain my flax egg mixture through cheesecloth to remove any texture from it.
give it a try :)
LottaT
I always use flax eggs for such things. I make the flax meal myself, just blend flax seeds up and put it in a jar for when I need it. I put what I need in a cup, add a little water, stir and leave it for 10 min or so before I use it. If you can get golden flaxseeds, they look better in many things, e.g. Like waffles, but the dark seeds do the same job. For things like this, you can also make vegan buttermilk. Add a tbsp of apple cider vinegar to 1.5 cups of soy milk (best with soy here for good consistency), stir and leave to curdle for 10 minutes. Becomes nice and thick. You could also add flax eggs to it! Some also make a batter of chickpea flour and water, with spices you would like added. Also works great and you could also add flex eggmto it for an even better mix. All up to you! To be honest, I have been so surprised as to how well I do without eggs. I even just bought a belgian waffle maker and have had waffles more or less every day and I love them! Heck, my picky dog, who never wants bread or similar, LOVE my waffles made with vegan buttermilk, flax eggs, home made vegan margarine and whole wheat flour! I couldn’t believe it! She has never eaten baked things without eggs before, she always spit it out. But she cries to get these waffles! Same with chickpea flour pancakes made with the same “eggs” and “buttermilk”… One thing I have learned on this vegan journey of mine, is that dogs don’t discriminate on ingredients, if it is good stuff, it is good stuff to her. Does not matter if the meat is made from plants, to her it is just yummy meat and she is happy to eat it. More humans should be like her, sadly we are so prejudiced. Kept me unhappy on meat for years, because I thought the alternatives were horrible… I was shocked when I realized, I like plant based meat so much more than animal meat! Even bacon (bakun ), homemade though! Heck, I even enjoy making many things from scratch… It is so much fun to experiment! Now I will try to figure out a version of traditional Christmas lunch meat, both pretty rolls, one usually made from pork, the other from lamb… What an adventure… Fun to try some of these things even if you aren’t vegetarian or vegan, you are making a difference, amongst others for the environment, when you cut down on meat and other animal products. And in some cases, the alternative is both super healthy and cheap, as e.g. The flax eggs. Why use eggs when flax eggs do the job (I won’t even begin with all the great usual reasons for cutting eggs)? Makes no sense!
Ale
Wow!!!! All that sound incredible!!!! Could you post a link to those recipes? Id love to try them out!
Travis
Looks like I’m going to need to break out the dinosaur cookie cutters!!!
But first. Is there a reasonable substitution for the egg during the dredging? What about Dijon mustard or veganaise, or would that be too thick?
Nick
Hey Travis, I think those sauces might be a bit thick for a breading. But, I think you could thin Veganaise with veggie stock or something and then I think it would work. You really just want something so the breadcrumbs stick well.
Travis
I did a little research and I think I’m going to try and use “flax egg”, a mixture of ground flax seeds and warm water. I has a nice goopy consistency that should work similar to an egg. I’ve actually used this in veggie patty and veggie meatball recipes to help in binding.
MAGGIE
I LOVE FLAX EGGS!
Terry5
Another thing that works well as egg replacer is the liquid drained from a can of chickpeas. Try it, you’ll like it!
LottaT
Aqua Faba (“bean water” usually from chickpeas, but the fluid from other light color beans also work) is also GREAT, and can be used for a lot of different purposes. You can leave it out in a cup for a few hours, letting it thicken a bit more. You can also boil it to evaporate some of the water. You can also mix it using the mixer and it will make a wonderful cream which you can use in place of whipped cream, or you can make meringues, yes, the most delicious meringues, from it. Just google “aqua faba”. Easy to make mayonaisse with it too, the recipe I have used also have you add a few chickpeas to the mix before you blend. The most popular one I made, had a tespoon of sriracha and some yellow mustard as flavoring and the recipe has garlic in it too. Keeps for around two weeks.
For this use, you could whip the aqua faba (maybe try with a stick blender for time), just don’t whip it too thick, stop when it has buttermilk-consistency. Bet that would work great!
Of course you don’t have to open a can to get aqua faba, you get wonderful aqua faba from cooking your own chickpeas/garbanzo beans! If you have not tried, give it a try! I think they taste a lot better than the canned ones! My dog goes nuts over them! Great with a few chickpeas and a bit aqua faba “sauce” in the boring kibble, sure makes my dog real happy! After you drained the chickpeas, put the aqua faba back in a pot and let it simmer to make it thicker. Check some YT videos if you want to see what to go for. When it is done and cooled, add to ice cube bags or trays and freeze. When frozen, break out and add to a ziploc bag and return to freezer. Now you can take out just what you need…
TALLULAH
For Flex egg what is the ratio flax:water?
Travis
I do 1 tablespoon flax meal with 2-3 tablespoons water… Mix and let sit for a few minutes.
LottaT
Hi,
I agree with Travis on the ratio, I usually use 1 tbsp of flax meal to 2.5 tbsp of water to replace one average size egg. If the recipe asks for a large egg, I would simply use a real heaped spoon and up the water to 3 tbsp.
If I add it as an extra binder to a recipe that does not ask for it, I cut down on the water (I have e.g added it to vegan pancake recipes that did not ask for this or any other egg replaces, didn’t have any fat either, which made them dry and crumbly. This and a little oil completely transformed them!). I don’t measure it then, just add enough water to hydrate the flax meal, leave it for 10 minutes, then add. Or, in some things you can add the flax meal to the dry ingredients and just let it be hydrated and do it’s thing when the wet ingredients have been added and it is left to rest or rise. Some recipes asks you to do this.
Anyways, there are many great options to use in place of eggs. You can also buy egg replacer, but the challenge with that is that it is expensive. There are some recipes for home made mixes online though, which may be a great thing to have for when these simpler options won’t work (you can’t e.g make scrambled eggs from flax egg ). Google and search on YouTube…
I looked up a proper recipe on how to make a flax egg, from minimalistbaker.com :
FLAX EGG
Prep time
5 mins
Total time
5 mins
A step-by-step tutorial of how to make a flax egg, egg substitute for baking!
Author: Minimalist Baker
Recipe type: Vegan
Cuisine: Vegan, Baking
Serves: 1
Ingredients
1 Tbsp (7 g) flaxseed meal (ground raw flaxseed)
2 1/2 Tbsp (37 ml) water
Instructions
Add flaxseed meal and water to a dish and stir. Let rest for 5 minutes to thicken. Add to recipes in place of 1 egg.
It’s not an exact 1:1 substitution in every recipe because it doesn’t bind and stiffen during baking quite like an egg does. But I’ve found it to work incredibly well in pancakes, quick breads, brownies, muffins, cookies, and many other recipes.
Notes
*This is not my original recipe, but one I discovered on many vegan baking blogs and have since adapted for my own use.
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 1 egg Calories: 37 Fat: 2.2g Saturated fat: 0g Carbohydrates: 2g Fiber: 1.9g Protein: 1.3g
Brenda
I just use unsweetened soy milk when frying something with breading, usually works out fine, and I like double dipping to make a thick crispy crust! I use Zatarains southern style chicken coating, tastes like KFC!
Ray H
You can also use Aquafaba as an egg replacement. Works beautifully
Debbie
Hi Travis! I have found much more success using Aquafaba instead of flax seed or chia seed egg substitutes. Aquafaba is the juice from a can of beans. Chickpeas, white kidney beans and other white beans give a clear, egg-white consistency. I use the Presidents Choice Blue Menu (in Canada) that has no salt added. Just water down a bit and it works wonderfully (with no beany taste :) )
Rachel Brink
Can I bake these instead of frying?
Nick
Yes you definitely can. They won’t be quite as crispy obviously, but still good. :)
Lindsau
Think you could pan-fry?
Nick
Yea. I think that would work fine. Don’t see why that wouldn’t work. I would still bread them though to make sure they get really crispy.
Carol Tice | Make a Living Writing
Look delicious! I have one kid who is really not eating veggies these days and this might help us…thanks!
Cath Taylor
Looks good. Also cooking for a vegetarian, so this caught my eye. Reminds me a bit of falafel balls, so I wonder if one could throw in some chickpeas. I made black bean burgers for dinner, and it’s always a challenge to flip the very crumbly patties, even with two eggs mixed in. I find if I dry the canned black beans out thoroughly in the microwave, the whole mixture is more apt to hold together during pan frying. Also cooking much of the liquid out of the aromatic vegs I mix in. And adding some dry meal of some kind. Have to try the freezing technique, as these seem to have a whole different texture than what I’m babbling about.
mandy
I made these this morning after I got the E-mail update! AMAZING! Half the batch is done & in the freezer waiting for a future date when I shall need them desperately. I also used various cookie cutters so they all have different shapes. I used Halloween cookie cutters- bats, ghost, vampire & devil oh my :-) Thank you Nick for going to all this trouble for us vegetarians :-)
Nick
Awesome! I love the idea of using fun cookie cutters. :)
Massy
Oh they look delicious! I’ll try them but probably will go for a baked version. :D
Larry Joseph Morgan
I’m going to try this on my wife, who absolutely hates broccoli, beets, and peppers. but LOVES chicken. I may try to cut the heat a little by substituting yellow bell peppers. I love the heat, but she doesn’t.
Sarah
These look amazing! I love it when things like veggie burgers, nuggets, and sausages are made from a bunch of actual veggies, rather than ingredients I wouldn’t normally use at home. The best veggie sausages I ever had was at this random hotel in Scotland. I asked the chef if he’d make me something (there was nothing vego on the breakfast menu), and he made these amazing vegge sausages (I think they were potato-based). He even came out to ask me how they were, and I urged him to put them on the menu. You could tell he was very proud of himself – I suspect it was one of the few times he’d tried his hand at a vegetarian dish like that!
Lauren
This is great! I make big batches of baked veggie nuggets for my toddler to take something easy to eat for lunch at preschool. I use potato, frozen mixed organic veggies, potato, oatmeal, egg, smoked paprika/garlic powder and roll in wheat germ. I don’t think I would serve them to adult guests, but babies/toddlers love them and they are a great easy to eat lunch option. I’d be happy to share the method. Also rotate in a nugget version of TFIMB quinoa/hummus patties and a couple others.
Nick
Those sound awesome Lauren! Always love a Macheesmo-TFIMB hook up also. :)
Veggie Fan Alex
I have a feeling that this is going to be my new favorite snack. :) And it’s healthy, too! I’m really glad I’ve found this recipe. If you know any snack ideas like this, please let me know. Thanks!
Dee
Is there a way to make this recipe more healthy? Cooking them twice cooks out a lot of the vitamins. The deep frying- well also not stellar. Can you somehow put the veggies in a food processor, mold them and bake them?
Nick
Hey Dee, it’s pretty tough to shape them while they are raw so you do need to cook them first. You can shape them and bake them though. That works okay! They don’t get quite as crispy obviously, but still pretty tasty!
Heather
I am vegan and would love to try these. They sounds delicious, but they use egg. Do you have any suggestion of what I can use instead? I have some ideas, but I would love to know what you think.
Thanks!
Nick
Hey Heather! I just used an egg for the breading and you could easily substitute a lot of stuff. I think I would dunk them in a little coconut milk and then bread them and fry them! It would be totally delicious. If you give it a shot, report back!
Katia
This recipe looks good but my mixture is too watery and i couldn’t find aby parnish in my local market so i did not use it.What can i do to fix my mixture
Nick
Hey Katia! I would mix in some breadcrumbs straight to the mix until they hold their shape. You might need 1/2-1 cup of breadcrumbs but that should firm up the mix if it’s too loose. Good luck!
Jill
So, do you fry/bake them straight from the freezer?
Nick
Hey Jill! Yep… straight from the freezer to the fryer! Hope you like them!
Melissa
I was really excited to make these for my toddler (and myself), but they turned out to be way too much work. 15-20 minutes in the freezer didn’t even get the filling close to being solid enough to cut into shapes that were stable enough to dip in the eggs and breadcrumbs. And then once I cut the filling into nuggets there was a lot of wasted filling. I suppose I could have let it thaw, spread it out again, and then cut more pieces, but after an hour of working on these I was fed up. Maybe if I dare attempt these again I could try rolling them into balls with my hands and then rolling in breadcrumbs. The parsnip flavor also overwhelmed the other vegetables so I would leave those out.
Nick
Hey Melissa! Sorry they didn’t work out as you thought they would. That’s always a bummer to hear. Depending on the consistency of the mix, you might need to add a little flour to the filling to get it to firm up more. Mine worked out okay, but you might need some thickener if it’s too runny. Also, on the shape… you can just cut the nuggets into squares also which reduces the waste or you could just shape with your hands like you suggest. Thanks for reporting back though!
Lani
I love this recipe! I tried to make it using an oven, but the inside was really soggy, and didn’t cook very well. But when I fried them, Oh My Goodness… it was amazing~! I can’t wait to make them again. :)
Nick
If you want to bake them flip them when they are half way cooked or when the top is browned.
Cheryl
What’s the nutrition facts with these?
Nick
Hey Cheryl, I don’t calculate or post nutrition info for my recipes… just too much work and I’m a one-man shop! But there are a ton of online calculators where you can plug in ingredients and it’ll tell you what’s what. I like the one at Calorie Count! http://www.caloriecount.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php Good luck!
sarah
Can you freeze these after frying and then reheat in the oven when desired?
Nick
Sure Sarah! I would freeze them on a baking sheet so they don’t stick and then store them in an airtight container. Reheat in the oven at 350 degrees F. until hot and crispy!
Kari
For people who have baked these, how did these turn out? Any special instructions?
veronica
Hi! Really want to try these tonight but I have no idea what a golden beet is or where to find it! I have regular beets…???? Any suggestions? I will keep looking for the golden beet though because it looks fun
Thanks!
Nick
Hey Veronica! You can use regular beets. The nuggets will just be bright red and you’ll have a red-stained kitchen by the time you are done. :) Golden beets are almost always right next to the regular beets. They are yellow instead of red so cut down on some of the staining. Good luck!
Mallory
Thank you so much for this recipe! I just recently became a vegetarian and this is perfect!
Althea
Can i ask the copy of your recipe becuse i have a research paper and i want to present this recipe thanks in advance
CJ R
I thought these were great! I used a turnip because I couldn’t find a golden beet, and an Anaheim pepper to make milder. I cut into squares and got them up with a spatula. I made them vegan:
Dipped in flour
Dipped in soymilk curdled with a bit of lemon juice
Rolled in panko breadcrumbs.
Then I pan fried them on both sides with about 1/4 inch of vegetable oil in a skillet, draining on paper towels.
I only made half of them because they started thawing and getting messy and hard to bread. The rest are in the freezer and will be made later.
Unfortunately, the kids and one adult didn’t like them, but two of us thought they were wonderful. My husband said they reminded him of potato croquettes. I had them with a kiwifruit hot sauce–yum!!
Really cool idea; thanks for coming up with it. I wish more of my family had liked; I would have put it on regular rotation.
Kalyn
These are great – awesome way for my non-veggie-loving husband to get more green foods in his belly. I would love to share some of these images, with your permission, on my website for a recipe roundup!
Nick
Hey Kalyn, go for it! Just link back to this original post please for the recipe and attribution. Glad you liked them!
Kelly
Oh my, oh my, oh my….I made these today whilst the kids were at nursery and they have just eaten them, actually, they didn’t eat them, they SCOFFED them.
I make them bubble and squeak patties normally, but they NEVER turn out like these bad boys, thank you for sharing. These are our new freezer favourites from now on I think, they were a hit with my boys and I even dipped one in some ketchup…then another…oops, I think they have all gone now, I will just HAVE to make some more. Thank you
Nick
Oh Kelly, that totally made my day! Thanks for reporting back! I’m making a batch of these this weekend for my little guy also actually. :)
Debi
I’m excited to make these for my family this week, they love stuff like this! Other than ketchup, I’m not sure what kind of sauce to try. Any suggestions? I make honey mustard a lot, but that doesn’t sound right with these. What do people usually try? Ranch? Something else? Thank you!
Nick
Hey Debi, I actually love them with a quick honey mustard or slightly spicy ketchup (ketchup plus a little sriracha). Ranch or a good BBQ sauce is great with them also! Good luck!
Debi
Thanks so much for getting back to me. I made these the other night and they were AWESOME! A big hit with the family. My daughter mostly wanted ketchup with them, but I also made ranch blended with an avocado and that’s what hubby and I liked best. Thanks for this- and for this site!
Debi
So I ended up making these the other day- they were AWESOME! Will definitely make again. And my daughter mostly preferred just ketchup for dipping. But I also made ranch blended with an avocado and hubby and I liked that best. Thank you for this!
Nick
Nice Debi! So glad they turned out okay for ya. Cheers!
WelaJoey
I also need to use an egg substitute due to allergies,but also can not use coconut oil! Suggestions please?
Nick
Buttermilk would be a good option! Good luck!
WelaJoey
Oops,forgot to mention dairy allergies too
Going to search for this Veganaise or maybe a tiny bit of soymilk.
Bit hard to find anything like that in Germany!
Will let you know how they turn out!
(what’s TFIMB?&Lauren..may I have your recipes also,please?).
Thanks!
Carolyn
Try just dipping in a little water, maybe with a few drops of lemon juice. You just need something for the breading to cling to.
Claire Pallett
What could I used instead of golden beet please x
Claire Pallett
What could I used instead of golden beet please
Nick
Hey Claire, you could use a normal beet if you don’t mind the red color or just an extra carrot or two! GOod luck!
Laura
Are you able to freeze these? I would like to make some in advance and have them on hand when I am hungry.
Vicki
These did not work out for me. I had to freeze them forever to be able to cut them into shapes. Then when I went to fry them they totally fell apart. Have you made this more than once? I’m wondering if it was a fluke that they worked out so well.
Nick
Hey Vicki! I’m sorry to hear that! Yes… I’ve made them a bunch of times. Just did a batch last week actually and baked them instead of frying them. I wonder if there was just too much liquid in your mix? When my mix is done, before chilling it, it’s basically the consistency of cookie dough and will hold its shape. A few times when I’ve made them I’ve had to add extra flour or breadcrumbs to thicken the mixture a bit so maybe that’s the case? Feel free to shoot me an email if you want to try again! Happy to help!
Amy
How did it work when you baked it? I wanted to try it that way and read comments to see if noone else baked it and only saw one comment that said it was soggy in the middle.
Bailey
These sound great and way better than anything frozen at the store. For those looking to replace the egg you can buy Egg Replacer or use 2 tbsp ground flaxseed with 6 Tbsp of water. Can’t wait for the kids to try these!
Kristen O.
Thank you for this recipe. My daughter has some pretty severe allergies that have pushed us to bring her food everywhere we go. (We have had several instances of cross contamination that have led to reactions.) It is really getting had to not repeat the same meals over and over again. She is a picky eater by nature so this looks like something that I can do with her that she may eat. Although I will probably use milk to dredge with instead of the egg (which she is allergic to).
Becky
Sorry if this has been mention already, but can these be baked?
Betsy
These look great! I plan on making (baking) them for my toddlers to get some good veggie finger foods in! Would love to make them grain-free though-thoughts on using almond meal instead of bread crumbs?
Anja
This sounds really tasty! I want to give it a try but I follow gluten free diet and would love to know if there is any solution how to replace those bread crumbs?
Thanks a lot and hugs from Europe
jeanne
use quinoa flour-it tastes great-I use it all the time to bread fish and other stuff!
Jess
I have a food science question – what purpose is there to blanching the veggies versus simply boiling them and then chopping them in the food processor? Just wondering if the ice water bath has some sort of benefits?
Lisa
Blanching is a method of boiling a vegetable for just 30-60 seconds just to take the raw edge off it. Then you drop them in ice water to stop the cooking. What he actually did here was full-on boiling. He cooked them until they were fork-tender (3 to 10 minutes, depending on the veg). That’s the opposite of blanching. Hope that helps!
Siobhan
What would be the best way to cook them If I were to take the freeze option after the breading process?
Kiran Sultana
Hey, can we shape the chicken nugget mixture using the freezer technique?
Lois
These look wonderful. I shall try them. Thanks for the recipe.
Cristian
Hi can you give me the aroma of veggie nuggets?
Renee Adams
What would you suggest to make this glueten free?
Nick
I think you could substitute gluten-free coating for the breadcrumbs. That’s the only gluten thing in the recipe. I think they make gluten-free breadcrumbs!
Doreen
I was wondering if this might work with all the left over pulp from juicing – has anyone tried it? It would be wonderful to be able to use all the pulp for something delicious like these.
Lisa
I haven’t tried it but it sounds like a great idea to me. You can also use the pulp in spaghetti sauce or as a veggie layer in lasagna, dehydrate it to use in recipes in place of bread crumbs, or compost it for a backyard garden. :-)
Amy
Could I substitute sweet potato and kohlrabi for the golden beet and potato? I want to make these as carb friendly as possible, but still want them to maintain their shape.
Nick
I think sweet potato definitely! Good luck!
Carrie
Made these with red beets instead of gold, just what I had on hand. Turned out sweet, but delicious! I used soft tofu blended with soy milk instead of eggs. I tried to add a picture, but there doesn’t seem to be an option. I also froze them, and just baked them from frozen at 450F for 25 minutes, flipping after 15 minutes. Super handy for lunches at home! Thanks for the recipe!
Jill
Has anyone tried cooking them in the Actifry? I am assuming it would best without the paddle
Angie
Did you Blanche the Serrano pepper as well? With seeds? Thanks, angie
Christel
So these are in the freezer now, I added everything as stated but I don’t think I should have added the pepper. I think it will be too spicy for my bub. Hoping that frying will take some of the heat out? I also think I either cooked or pulsed my veggies too long. Its a little baby food like. Crossing my fingers he’ll enjoy it either way. Otherwise I guess its a batch for daddy and me!
Air Fryer Kitchen
I wonder if you could actually cook these in an air fryer instead of deep frying them. Just to make them a bit healthier. I might give it a go! Will let you know if it works.
ABoll
Mine have been in the freezer for 40 minutes and I still cannot even pick them up once I cut them. They are way too soft. What did I do wrong?
Nick
Hey Aboll, it sounds like maybe there is too much liquid in the veggies. You can press a few paper towels into the mixture to try to dry it out a bit before shaping it. Good luck!
Ashley Bach
Calorie info please :) I can’t seem to find it
Natalie
I love the cookie cutter idea and putting the mixture in the freezer first- what a handy tip! One of my pet hates is when veggie burgers etc…are too soft and mushy to cook and everything falls apart. Thanks for the tip!
Crystal
You’ve got to love this! Such goodness in a bite-size snack and they look scrumptious. Definitely adding this to my Pinterest board. Should be one the kids will demolish.
Kay
This looks so good. I’m going to try it in an air fryer =) Thanks for the recipe and instruction!
Susan L
Hi Kay! I’m hoping to try in an air fryer as well. Did you have any luck? If so, can you help flatten my learning curve and share how long and at what temp?
Miranda
I am on a tight budget and a tight schedule. Could I use frozen instead of fresh with this recipe?
Emka
These sound pretty delish! I have a Philips juicer and have always wanted to find a use for all the dry(ish) pulp that is left over. Now I know what to do with it! I am so curious to see if it will work…perhaps by adding an egg and a little flour, we will finally have a solution and won’t have to throw away all that pulp (which I’m sure is packed with vitamins!) I’m thinking since it’s already so finely pulsed and has the consistency of soft play dough, it won’t require any pre-cooking. Worth a try! If it’s a success, I’ll follow up on this post. Fingers crossed!
Nick
Hey Emka! Good luck! I think it’s an awesome idea! Report back if you try it. :)
jeck
hey, I have read your article. and it is really awesome.
I wrote also an article so please read also this:
https://indeednet.com/why-are-most-hindus-vegetarian/
Vivien D
Love this recipe so much, I made the nuggets tonight and they were delicious! Definitely going to make it again!
Nick
Awesome! So glad you liked them Vivien. :)
Mel
Such an awesome recipe! I’m afraid to admit we buy the quorn nuggets at home but I do wonder if they have any nutritional value sometimes?! These would clearly be a much better alternative so I’m going to try these on my veggie clan. Thanks for sharing!