Chicken Nuggets - cooking recipe

Ingredients

Chicken Nuggets
8 chicken thighs, skinned and deboned
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh chives
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic-flavored hot pepper sauce (recommended -- garlic-flavored Tabasco)
1 lemon, juice of
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
vegetable oil, for frying
1 cup flour, for dredging
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups panko (japanese) breadcrumbs
Honey-Mustard Dipping Sauce
1/4 cup mild yellow mustard
1/4 cup honey
salt & freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

For the nuggets:
In a large bowl, marinate the pieces of chicken in buttermilk. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator overnight. This will tenderize the chicken.
Heat oil in a deep fryer. Drain and discard the buttermilk. In a food processor, combine the marinated chicken, egg, chives, Parmesan, soy sauce, garlic-flavored hot sauce, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Blend until a smooth paste is formed, about 1 minute.
Make about 2-inch by 1-inch nuggets, lining them up on a baking tray.
In a shallow bowl, add the flour and in a second bowl the beaten eggs, and in a third bowl the panko bread crumbs.
Coat the nuggets in flour, then egg, and then the panko crumbs and place the nuggets back on the tray. Deep fry in small batches until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Alternately, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large skillet and fry, turning every 2 minutes, for about 10 minutes.
For the dipping sauce:
Combine the mustard, honey, salt, and pepper in a bowl and mix well. Can be made up to 1 day in advance.
Cook's Note:
Soaking the chicken in Buttermilk will result in tender and juicy chicken. You can buy buttermilk in the dairy product section of a supermarket, but mixing 1 cup of milk with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar achieves the same result.