Veggie Nuggets Recipe
Just like chicken nuggets, veggie nuggets are the perfect finger food for little hands. We love the Veggie Nuggets Recipe, because it’s just one extra way to get those veggies in. You can eat these plain like nuggets for lunch, or use them in place of meatballs (which is what we did for our meal plan a few weeks ago!)
The veggies we used in these nuggets are generally acceptable to most kids. But we cooked them first to make them soft and bring out the flavor. The veggies included:
- Potatoes – Potatoes are a great source of vitamin C, and they help bind all the ingredients together in these nuggets.
- Carrots – Carrots are a good source of Vitamin A. Most kids like them raw, but this is a good way to introduce cooked carrots as well.
- Peas – A good source of Vitamin K and Maganese. We always have peas on hand in the freezer, and they are a great addition to any meal.
- Onions– These are a great way to get quercetin, an antioxidant good for kids. Onions also provide flavor to these nuggets as well.
- Garlic – More flavor from garlic, but garlic is also a good source of the antioxidant Allicin.
The basic steps of making these nuggets include:
1) Start with shredding potatoes, carrots, chopping onions, and defrosting peas.
The kids can help with shredding or pealing the potatoes. Shredding the carrots for kids who are a little bit older, and chopping onions for the oldest kids.
2) Cook veggies in a skillet until they are soft and tender.
These cook quickly if they are shredded with a cheese grater! Let the kids stir the veggies in the skillet.
3) Add bread crumbs to veggie mix.
Dump in the bread crumbs. The kids can do this task. The bread crumbs can be substituted with gluten free products or even oats.
4) Chill in fridge until easy to handle.
Chilling is great because you can mix this up in the morning, and it will be ready to make into nuggets at lunch time or dinner. Store for several days if you need to!
5) Form nuggets.
You can also make fun shapes from the nuggets using cookie cutters. We’ve made stars before and even hearts.
6) Roll in breading and cook.
That’s it! We love these hot and right off the griddle, but you can chill them and reheat for another day.
Veggie Snack Nuggets
Ingredients
Instructions
- Dice onion, shred potatoes and carrots, and mince garlic.
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a medium skillet, then add diced onion; cook for 2 minutes or until softened.
- Add potatoes and carrots; continue to cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Mix in garlic, peas, salt, and pepper; continue to cook for 3 minutes more.
- Remove from heat, stir in juice from the lemon and 1/4 cup breadcrumbs; set aside until mixture is cool enough to handle.
- Shape veggie mixture into 15 to 20 balls; refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Place remaining breadcrumbs in a shallow dish. Heat remaining olive oil in a skillet over medium-high.
- Roll the balls into the breadcrumbs until coated on all sides.
- Add 4 to 5 nuggets at a time to the hot skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side until nicely browned. Drain on paper towels and repeat the process with the remaining veggie balls until all have been cooked, adding more oil as necessary.
Nutrition
www.superhealthykids.com
Let us know if you try these and how your kids like them!
Natalie Monson
I'm a registered dietitian, mom of 4, avid lover of food and strong promoter of healthy habits. Here you will find lots of delicious recipes full of fruits and veggies, tips for getting your kids to eat better and become intuitive eaters and lots of resources for feeding your family.
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Have you ever tried baking these?
Yes, and they are OK, just not as crispy…
This is an awesome idea, might actually get my kids to eat veggies now lol 🙂
I bet your kids will like it Rachael!
Can you blend it all together? My daughter won’t eat them if she sees all the chunks.
Sure Kim!! IF you have a good food processor, you totally could do that!
Hi, can you freeze these?
Yes you can! Just reheat in the oven so they return to their crispiness!
How long did you baked them & what temperature?
They are cooked in a skillet (see the recipe inset) ” Cook over medium-high heat for 3 minutes, turn and cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes, or until nicely browned”
This is a great idea! Do you think green beans would work instead of peas? My lo is not too crazy about potato either, but loves carrots. Do you think it would still hold up without as much potato?
Do you think these would cook well with Coconut or Avocado Oil?
Will Panko bread crumbs work in place of regular? Thanks!
I love vegetables, however, add breading and fry in fat and anything will tastes great.
Is the potato cooked? If so, how did you shred it without it falling apart?
Will be trying these…can I mix all the ingredients and then take portions out of the freezer to fry? Or would you not recommend this? Thx
@Ashley- I do. Beans might even taste a little better (more like falafel).
@Katia – coconut oil would work great- I have never used avocado oil.
@chris- Yes! Crunchier, but probably awesomer.
@sadi- they are cooked. You shred raw, and then cook them.
@Katie- I’ve never frozen them. I would cook it first, then freeze. Just reheat on a skillet or the oven so they stay a bit crispy.
What temp and how long do you bake them for, to reheat them after they have been frozen?
@Rheanna- I would bake them at 425 for about 10 minutes if they are small enough to cook through.
How ong it will ast??
how long it will ast???
how long it will last?
You can keep them in the fridge, but eat them within 3-4 days. @raida
When I originally commented I clicked the “Notify me when new comments are added” checkbox and now each time a comment is added I get several e-mails with the same comment. Is there any way you can remove me from that service? Bless you!
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Oh.! Wow!! Is very delicious
I want to try these in my air fryer!
Its look delicious.
Its look delicious. Thanks for this easy recipe.
I love this idea! Thoughts on using sweet potatoes instead of russet? What about adding broccoli? And any idea how pureeing the veggies would turn out? Thanks!
I think sweet potatoes would be a terrific swap! Also, adding broccoli should be great.
What could be used instead of bread crumbs? My son is allergic to both gluten and eggs.
Hi Danielle, you could try coursely-ground rolled oats in place of the bread crumbs. Or you could simply use gluten free bread crumbs (I think most stores have them now!) I hope this helps.
Worst recipe. How did it get 5 stars? My son and I spent alot of time preparing and when it was time to cook them, they CRUMBLED!!! Not edible. Crumble mess and I followed the recipe. I wasted money and my time!
I love this idea! Thoughts on using sweet potatoes instead of russet? What about adding broccoli?
You can definitely sub in whichever veggies your family likes! I do suggest keeping some russet potatoes in the mixture though, because the starchiness is part of what holds the nuggets together.
Thank you so much for my Favorite Delicious Veggie Nuggets Recipe.
Can I put califlower, broccoli,and carrots in the nuggets? And how much oats do I add? Thank you
Hi Ariel, yes, you can add your own blend of veggies, just try to match the volume of the ones listed. I’m not sure about the oats: are you asking if you can replace the bread crumbs with oats? You can definitely try!
Thank you so much for my Favorite Delicious Veggie Nuggets Recipe.
I like Veggie Nuggets,Thanks
Nice food. I like this food too much. I want to eat this food.
Have you ever put cheese in them? Wondering if it would make them too gooey inside.
We haven’t tried this- although I think it could work! Let us know if you try it and how they turn out!
its look delicious. very nice.
can you freeze these?
I have actually never tried freezing these but I don’t see why you couldn’t! Let me know if you try and how they turn out!
I love this idea! Thoughts on using sweet potatoes instead of russet? What about adding broccoli?
Great ideas! They are very customizable.
I would bake them at 425 for about 10 minutes if they are small enough to cook through.
I love vegetables, however, add breading and fry in fat and anything will tastes great.
Have you ever tried baking these?
You can bake them! Put them on a greased baking pan, bake them at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Flip, and bake for 5 minutes for until crisp and lightly browned.