A chicken nugget is a chicken product made from either meat slurry or chicken breasts cut to shape, breaded or battered, then deep-fried or baked. Fast food restaurants typically fry their nuggets in vegetable oil, such as coconut oil.
The chicken nugget was invented in the 1950s by Robert C. Baker, a food science professor at Cornell University, and published as unpatented academic work.[1] Dr. Baker's innovations made it possible to form chicken nuggets in any shape. McDonald's recipe for Chicken McNuggets was created on commission from McDonald's by Tyson Foods in 1979[citation needed] and the product was sold beginning in 1980.
Some fast food restaurants have launched vegetarian alternatives. McDonald's served Garden McNuggets made of beans, Irish fast food chain R. Haecker's offers a veggie nugget meal made with beans and cabbage, and Swedish fast food restaurant Max Hamburgare offers a dish containing nuggets made of falafel.
