Sure, Aldi has a lot of fancy options when it comes to frozen breaded chicken.
There’s the popular “red bag chicken” also known as Kirkwood Breaded Chicken Breast Fillets, which Aldi superfans claim are just like Chik-fil-A chicken sandwiches when paired with Aldi’s brioche buns.
There is also the “blue bag chicken” or Kirkwood Crispy Chicken Strips that are a dead ringer for what you might get at your favorite restaurant, and the “green bag chicken” or Kirkwood Parmesan Herb Encrusted Chicken Tenders make a memorable meal as well.
But sometimes you don’t want fancy chicken. Sometimes you just want some basic chicken nuggets, perhaps like what you used to eat when you were a kid. And you’re in luck, because Aldi sells those, too.
Kirkwood Nuggets cost $3.49 for a 29-oz. bag at the time of publication. These are a Regular Buy, which means they’re available at Aldi all year.
Similar to Aldi’s Kirkwood Popcorn Chicken, which is another Regular Buy in the freezer section, these nuggets are made with white meat chicken.
Each bag contains about 11 servings (which comes out to about 32 cents per serving).
One four-piece (76 grams) serving has 160 calories, 7 grams of total fat (9% DV), 1.5 grams of saturated fat (8% DV), 590 mg of sodium (26% DV), 12 grams of total carbohydrates (4% DV), 0 grams of sugars, and 11 grams of protein.
These are a processed food, so we have no expectations about these being healthy. Most chicken nuggets aren’t, unless you’re making them at home from scratch. The ingredients list is fairly lengthy, with the first few items being chicken breasts with rib meat, water, textured soy protein concentrate, salt, sodium phosphates, and spice extractives.
If you’re watching out for allergens, these contain soy and wheat.
Nutrition information and ingredients. (Click to enlarge.)
The nuggets can be heated in a conventional oven or in a microwave.
To bake in the oven, preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the frozen nuggets on a baking sheet and bake for 11-13 minutes.
To microwave, arrange the frozen nuggets on a microwave-safe plate. Heat on high for the following times:
- 5 nuggets for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes
- 10 nuggets for 2 to 2 1/2 minutes
- 15 nuggets for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes
Do not overheat, and refrigerate any leftovers immediately.
My kids love to heat these nuggets in the microwave for a quick, easy lunch. After they’ve been heated, they also pack nicely into a thermos for school lunches. I prefer to bake mine so they turn out crispier. They also do well in an air fryer.
They go perfectly with a lot of dipping sauces from Aldi, including BBQ sauce or Ranch. They don’t taste anything like McDonald’s chicken nuggets (and who can really imitate those anyway?), but they are good, inexpensive grocery store chicken nuggets and are a standby in our house when we want an easy lunch.
The Verdict:
Kirkwood Fully Cooked Nuggets are your standard grocery store chicken nuggets made with white meat. They heat easily in the oven or microwave and are nice to keep in the freezer for quick meals, especially if you’re feeding kids.
