Whole30 sweet potato chicken poppers are a healthy “chicken nuggets” recipe alternative that are quick and easy to make. A few simple ingredients and ready in under 30 minutes this is the perfect Whole30, Paleo, or gluten-free family friendly meal for during the week. Double the batch and toss these chicken poppers in the fridge or freezer to make meal prepping a breeze!
Sweet Potato Chicken Nugget Ingredients
I know I talk about how easy all Whole Kitchen Sink recipes are but this one has bumped up to first place. All it calls for is ground chicken, sweet potatoes, almond flour and a handful of spices and a trusty sheet pan. If your local grocery store doesn’t have ground chicken, ground turkey is a great substitute. Almond flour and the spices are widely available nowadays, and can be bought at all major grocery stores, even online at Amazon or a discount with Thrive Market.
Related: Whole30 Items at Target, Whole30 Items at Trader Joe’s & Whole30 Items at Walmart
How To Make Whole30 Sweet Potato Chicken Poppers
First you’ll preheat your oven, and lightly grease a large sheet pan with some oil or cooking spray oil. Then roll up your sleeves… using your hands is the best way to mix everything together. Start by putting your ground chicken, sweet potatoes (that have been peeled and shredded) into a large mixing bowl, add your seasonings and almond flour and use your hands to incorporate everything together!
Take small pieces and roll into a ball and slightly flatten forming poppers or nuggets, and place them evenly spaced out on a greased sheet pan. Pop them in the oven at 350 degrees and cook for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through. How easy is that? The chicken nuggets should be about a quarter to half inch thick, and resemble a flat egg shape.
Choosing to make a small bite-sized popper was no mistake, this recipe is perfect for little kids to enjoy! The added veggies are a bonus! If you want them to be a bit more crisp, you can turn the oven onto the broiler at the end for just a few minutes, or crisp them up in a skillet after they’re done baking.
Serving & Freezing Instructions
These Whole30 chicken nuggets are best enjoyed with some ranch or BBQ sauce, so grab your favorite dipping sauce! I prefer Primal Kitchen’s Ranch, Ketchup or BBQ, all of which you can get as part of the Whole Kitchen Sink bundle! Or, make your own Whole30 ranch, southwest ranch or BBQ!
This Whole30 sweet potato chicken nugget recipe is also really great as leftovers and put over a salad! I really do recommend doubling it, being you’re already pulling out a sheet pan because not only will you want more, but they also freeze well.
To freeze, you’ll want to make sure they’re cooled completely first. Then, you can either put the whole sheet pan into the freezer for about 20 minutes, just until the poppers are solid enough to not stick together if they were stacked and frozen, and then transfer them to a freezer safe bag or container. Or, you can wrap them up individually with a wax or freezer paper so they don’t freeze together. I like to freeze them in sets of 4, which makes pulling out a quick lunch or dinner option really easy!
Other Whole30 Chicken Recipes That You’ll Love:
Homemade Chicken Apple Sausages
Instant Pot Chicken Meatballs in Marinara
PrintSweet Potato Chicken Nuggets: Whole30, Paleo, Gluten-Free Poppers
Whole30 sweet potato chicken poppers are a healthy “chicken nuggets” recipe alternative that are quick and easy to make. A few simple ingredients and ready in under 30 minutes this is the perfect Whole30, Paleo, or gluten-free family friendly meal for during the week. Double the batch and toss these chicken poppers in the fridge or freezer to make meal prepping a breeze!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 2 cups shredded sweet potatoes (about 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and shredded)
- 3 tbsp almond flour
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp dried minced onion (or 1 tsp onion powder)
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and spray a baking sheet with a little bit of cooking oil, or lay down oven safe parchment/baking paper
- Combine all of the ingredients in a large mixing bowl until the sweet potato and spices are incorporated well
- Using your hands, form them into the nuggets or “poppers”. They should be about 1/4 inch-1/2 inch thick, in the shape of an oval or “flat egg shape”
- Place each formed nugget directly onto the sheet pan, in even rows with space between each, and continue until all of the chicken mixture in the mixing bowl is gone
- Next, put the sheet pan into the oven and bake for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through
- Remove from the oven and serve with your favorite dipping sauce
- If you want them to be a bit more crisp, put them under the broiler for about 3 minutes, or crisp them up on a fry pan over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes on each side
Notes
- If the chicken is too sticky to form, you can place the mixing bowl into the fridge for 20-30 minutes. This will help to make it easier to work with when forming it into the nuggets.
Nutrition Facts:
- Serving Size: Serves 4
- Calories: 289
- Fat: 16.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 13.9 g
- Fiber: 3.6 g
- Protein: 22.5 g
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Connie says
Made these with some leftover ground turkey & my son loved em 🙂
(I even snuck in a couple florets of broccoli chopped up lol)
Katie says
Love these! They are so easy and delicious and perfect for our toddler!
Grace says
These were yummy and my kiddo scarfed more down for dinner then I’ve seen him eat in awhile. I used a bakers potato instead of the sweet potato and Italian bread crumbs instead of the flour. 4 out of 5 just tor personal taste preferences, but it’s a great recipe for kiddos.
melissa says
I don’t like to leave comments on things I don’t like, but I DO still have to give you some praise…
While me, my husband or my 3 year old didn’t care for them, my 1 year old could NOT get enough of these. And he has like a million food allergies, so he literally can’t eat anything. And what he can eat, he hates. I made it with oat flour instead of almond flour (nut & wheat allergy also). This is the only way I can get him to eat protein. I ended up freezing these and every night, I’d pop a few in the microwave for him, and he would get sooo excited. So with that in mind, this recipe is still a winner in my book, and I’ll continue to make regularly! And I’m sure in time, I’ll grow fond of them 🙂
Christie says
Flavorful and delicious! Kids and husband also approved!
Melissa says
Do you think I would I be able to use oat flour? We have a nut allergy in the house
paleobailey says
Yes! Oat flour works just fine 🙂
Sara says
I didn’t have almond flour so I subbed with ground buckwheat groats. The smoked paprika is an odd flavor to me but It could be the purple sweet potatoes I used, I like them and think my little will like them too!
Melissa says
I make these all the time. Great for meal prep and freezing!
Ann says
My 13 month grandson absolutely loves these and I love that I have something healthy to give him and my husband and I love them too!! So glad I found this recipe!!💛
paleobailey says
I’m soo happy you all enjoy them! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review!!
katee says
These are SO good. Definitely a go to whether I’m on Whole30 or not. Grateful for a healthier version of my favorite food!