This chicken nuggets panini is my innovative take on chicken sandwich where I enhanced the deliciousness of a regular chicken sandwich with crispy chicken nuggets inside and combined the best of both worlds!
If you are looking for a kid friendly recipe which will also be loved by adults equally, then this chicken nuggets panini fits the bill perfectly! I made it twice back to back in a row because my better half got hooked on it badly!
I am sure you have had your fair share of regular chicken sandwiches which I am also fond of; but give this chicken nuggets panini a try and trust me you will hopelessly fall in love with it!
This can be a perfect option for your kids’ school lunch or even your own lunch on-the-go! And putting this sandwich together is as easy as a child’s play; so you can get it done quickly on a busy morning too!
What is chicken nuggets panini?
Panini literally means a sandwich made with Italian bread. That’s the very reason I made two variations of this chicken nuggets panini. The one using long garlic bread can be called an authentic panini.
But I didn’t grill it in the griller; instead I only toasted the bread on a griddle with little butter. This process crisped up the outside of the bread while also softening it at the same time.
The other variety of my chicken nuggets panini was by using our regular bread slices. I used multigrain bread as I have stopped buying plain white bread; but you can use any bread of your choice.
So when you stuff the bread slices or the Italian garlic bread with crispy chicken nuggets, you get what I named as chicken nuggets panini. Instead of preparing a chicken filling for the sandwich, I thought of giving it a twist and used nuggets as the filling.
Stuffing nuggets as filling not only saves time but also turns out a perfect combination with crispy bread. And the result is just mind-blowing! Trust me, you will make it again and again!
What’s not there to love in this delicacy? You have crispy bread outside and juicy chicken nuggets inside wrapped in melting cheese! A highly palatable dish for kids and adults alike!
If you have an air fryer, I suggest air frying the nuggets instead of frying them. I had made it in both ways – by deep frying the nuggets and also by air frying them. This method doesn’t change the final taste of your chicken nuggets panini.
If you are wondering which chicken nuggets to use, then worry not! You can use any variety – the plain nuggets, cheese & chicken nuggets or tandoori chicken nuggets! Also, if you don’t wanna use frozen nuggets, you can make fresh & crispy chicken nuggets from scratch using my recipe here!
If you are vegetarian and wanna make a meatless version of this panini, then feel free to use any veggie nugget of your choice. I am sure that will also turn out to be delicious!
Ingredients for chicken nuggets panini
Chicken nuggets: This is the star of the show! Chicken nuggets work beautifully as the filling for this panini. You can use any variety of chicken nuggets – the plain one, or cheese chicken nuggets or even tandoori chicken nuggets. The best part is you can deep/air fry your chicken nuggets immediately after taking them out of the freezer, so you don’t have to pre-plan this recipe!
Mayonnaise: You would need a spread to apply on the inside of the sandwich. I opted for mayo but you can use a cheese spread too. Anything that you or your kids like would work here. This will create a soft texture inside the crispy bread.
Cheese slice: What’s a panini without melting cheese inside? To get that cheesy interior, you will need a couple of cheese slices. Also the combination of mayo and cheese turns out to be immensely tempting and delish!
Fresh Romaine lettuce: To add an element of freshness, add a couple pieces of fresh lettuce; I like Romaine lettuce but iceberg and any other variety will also work here.
Bread: Now coming to an important component of your chicken nuggets panini – the bread, the critical supporting cast of the show! As you see, I have used 2 types of bread – a regular multigrain bread slice and also long Italian garlic bread. Both worked out wonderfully; I could not tell which one was better! Neither my better half could! So take your pick!
Butter: You will need a little amount of butter to spread on the outer side of the sandwich so that they brown and crisp up beautifully in the griller. Soften the butter in the microwave to make it spreadable.
How to make chicken nuggets panini?
Step 1: First we need to cook the chicken nuggets. You can either cook them traditionally i.e. by deep frying. But I would suggest air frying them if you own an air fryer. That way you can cut down a significant amount of oil which are unnecessary calories.
Step 2: Once your nuggets are fried, we will be assembling the chicken nuggets panini. This recipe is mostly about assembling.
Step 3: Take a clean chopping board and place 2 slices of bread. Spread softened butter evenly on one side of both the slices. Then flip them over to load the panini.
Step 4: On the other side of each of the slices, spread an even layer of the mayo of your choice. Then place a couple of lettuce leaves on each slice.
Step 5: On top of lettuce, place one cheese slice. Then place 4 nuggets on each of the bread slices. Next place another cheese slice on top of the nuggets.
Step 6: Now we will cover the panini with the other slice of bread; but before that, spread an even layer of the mayo on one side of each of the other 2 slices. Then cover the assembled panini keeping the mayo side facing down.
Step 7: Finally evenly spread softened butter on the top of the bread slices. Butter will help brown the panini and crisp up the bread.
Step 8: Preheat your sandwich griller if you have one handy or heat a griddle/tawa. Once hot, place the panini inside the grill and cover with top press. Let them grill for 5 minutes or until the breads are golden brown and crispy.
If you are grilling them on tawa, then place the panini on the tawa and cover it with aluminum foil. Then place a heavy object like a bowl filled with water on top of the foil so that your panini remains pressed. Let them grill for 5 minutes on low heat; then flip over and repeat the same pressing process.
Step 9: Once your chicken nuggets panini are evenly grilled and crispy, take them out and cut diagonally to make sandwich triangles. Serve the delicious panini with ketchup and enjoy!
Other delicious snacks recipe from Flavor Quotient
- Chicken nuggets – 8
- Mayonnaise of your choice – 4 tbsp
- Cheese slice – 4
- Fresh Romaine lettuce – 4 leaves
- Bread of your choice (multigrain/white) – 4 slices
- Butter - 2 tbsp, softened (but not melted)
- First we need to cook the chicken nuggets. You can either cook them traditionally i.e. by deep frying. But I would suggest air frying them if you own an air fryer. That way you can cut down a significant amount of oil which are unnecessary calories.
- Once your nuggets are fried, we will be assembling the chicken nuggets panini. This recipe is mostly about assembling.
- Take a clean chopping board and place 2 slices of bread. Spread softened butter evenly on one side of both the slices. Then flip them over to load the panini.
- On the other side of each of the slices, spread an even layer of the mayo of your choice. Then place a couple of lettuce leaves on each slice.
- On top of lettuce, place one cheese slice. Then place 4 nuggets on each of the bread slices. Next place another cheese slice on top of the nuggets.
- Now we will cover the panini with the other slice of bread; but before that, spread an even layer of the mayo on one side of each of the other 2 slices. Then cover the assembled panini keeping the mayo side facing down.
- Finally evenly spread softened butter on the top of the bread slices. Butter will help browning the panini and crisp up the breads.
- Preheat your sandwich griller if you have one handy or heat a griddle/tawa. Once hot, place the panini inside the grill and cover with top press. Let them grill for 5 minutes or until the breads are golden brown and crispy.
- If you are grilling them on tawa, then place the panini on the tawa and cover it with aluminum foil. Then place a heavy object like a bowl filled with water on top of the foil so that your panini remains pressed. Let them grill for 5 minutes on low heat; then flip over and repeat the same pressing process.
- Once your chicken nuggets panini are evenly grilled and crispy, take them out and cut diagonally to make sandwich triangles. Serve the delicious panini with ketchup and enjoy!
Liked the recipe? Let us know!