Homemade Chicken Nuggets

1. 1Cut the thighs into chunks and freeze for 15 minutes. Part-frozen meat minces cleanly instead of smearing into paste.
2. 2Blitz the chicken in a food processor with the salt, both peppers, garlic powder, onion powder and the cold water. Pulse rather than run it — you want a coarse, sticky mince, not a mousse. About 15 one-second pulses.
3. 3The water matters more than it looks. It keeps the mince loose enough to stay tender, and without it nuggets cook up dense and rubbery.
4. 4Wet your hands and shape the mixture into 20 flattened ovals about 1.5 cm thick. Chill them for 15 minutes so they hold together in the fryer.
5. 5Set up three bowls: flour, beaten egg, panko. Coat each nugget in flour, then egg, then press it firmly into the panko on both sides.
6. 6Heat the oil to 175°C. Fry six at a time for 3–4 minutes, turning once, until deep gold and cooked through. Any more in the pan and the temperature crashes.
7. 7Drain on a rack rather than kitchen paper — paper traps steam under them and softens the crust you just made.

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