Next up in our ongoing search for the best and worst frozen chicken nugget in grocery stores – this self-styled tempura style nugget from Pilgrim’s. Unlike many nuggets that are precooked and ultimately heat and serve – the package here is careful to note these nuggets do have raw chicken and need thoroughly cooking.
Cooking: Deep fry or bake, but definitely not microwave. I also tried the ever trusty air fryer to cook these up which worked well.
Taste and texture: The tempura moniker is a bit of a stretch. Where the Japanese classic is known for its lightness and clean tasting flavor – these nuggets are heavy and greasy. That’s not a bad thing by any means, they’re great in that greasy junk food confirm way. But tempura? No. Not so much. There’s some minor mushiness between the batter and the chicken that also oozes a little while mush too, that’s a little unappealing but not a deal breaker. Taste wise these are quite enjoyable, very juice, with a little chicken flavor.
Overall: An interesting chicken nugget that’s certainly different to the run of the mill nuggets. They’re reminiscent of Tyson’s battered tenders, albeit in a different shape.
-
Overall
Are Pilgrim’s Tempura Chicken Breast Nuggets any good?
Don’t expect real Japanese tempura and you won’t be too disappointed. These nuggets feature a heavier and greasier batter that’s quite enjoyable.
Hi, I’m Stuart, nice to meet you! I’m the founder, writer and wrangler at Gastronomic SLC – Utah’s biggest and oldest online food magazine; I’m also a former restaurant critic of more than five years, working for the Salt Lake Tribune. I’ve worked extensively with multiple local publications from Visit Salt Lake to Salt Lake Magazine, not least helped to consult on national TV shows.
I’m a multiple-award winning journalist and have covered the Utah dining scene for the better part of fifteen years. I’m largely fueled by a critical obsession with rice, alliteration and the use of big words I don’t understand. I started Shop Smart to catalogue my adventures in the grocery store and kitchen. Follow along on Instagram too!
I have some pilgrims chicken nuggets from about a year ago and the other day I opened the bag and read the directions to deep fry them, it said to cook them for 5+ minutes at 350 and I cooked about 9 at a time and they were some of the best nuggets I have ever had. I just wish I could find out were I can get some more. The Walmart store sometimes say they have them but when you get there their are none and they try to substitute something else. If I wanted something else I would have asked for it.