Chicken nuggets, from artist Banksy's 2008 installation "The Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill" in New York City.Mario Tama/Getty Images hide caption
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Mario Tama/Getty Images
Chicken nuggets, from artist Banksy's 2008 installation "The Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill" in New York City.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
Chicken nuggets: Call them tasty, call them crispy, call them quick and convenient. But maybe you shouldn't call them "chicken."
so saysDr. Richard deShazo, professor of pediatrics and medicine at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. In aresearch notepublished inAmerican Journal of Medicine, deShazo and his colleagues report on a small test they conducted to find out what's in the snacks, which are especially loved by children. Their conclusion?
“Our sampling shows that some commercially available chicken nuggets are actually thick nuggets,” he tells The Salt. “Their name is a misnomer,” he and his colleagues write. The nuggets they were looking at were only 50 percent meat at best. The rest? Fat, blood vessels, nerves, connective tissue and ground bone – the latter are normal thingsends up in dog food.
This was an informal test. To conduct their "chicken autopsy," the researchers went to two different national fast-food chains near their health center in Jackson, Miss., and ordered chicken nuggets over the counter. The fast food chains involved were unnamed: "we thought this off-topic would generate negative publicity," deShazo told us via email.
When we put the chicken sample under the microscope, it was only 40 percent skeletal muscle – what we commonly call “meat” – and only 19 percent protein. The second sample consisted of 50 percent meat and only 18 percent protein.
Although the sample size was obviously small, the results were nevertheless disturbing, according to DeShazo.
“The dominant ingredient is not healthy, lean chicken meat, a great source of healthy protein,” he says, “but an adulterated chicken product containing 50 percent or less chicken meat, with other chicken ingredients, in a suspension of unknown carrier material.”
Still, kids love chicken nuggets, even if they're aware of the less tasty ways they can be made, like chef Jamie Oliverdisturbingly demonstratedwith a bunch of school kids on his TV show a few years agoMadrevolutie. “We were surprised that the chicken nuggets haven't been cleaned up” since that rather memorable episode, deShazo says.
And deShazo, who also hosted the wellness showsouthern centerat Mississippi Public Broadcasting, has a real professional interest in what kids eat. This is about 1 in 3 adultsobese in Mississippi, and the epidemic now includes children. So, he writes, "we thought it might be important to know a little more about the contents of today's chicken nugget." But the chicken nuggets the researchers looked at were, he said, a "poor source of protein" with limited nutritional value.
In aannouncementthe National Chicken Council said you can't really draw "scientifically sound" conclusions "about an entire product category, given a sample size of two."
"Chicken nuggets tend to be high in fat because they are breaded and fried. But it's no secret what's in a chicken nugget — most fast-casual restaurants have nutritional information in the store or on their website," the statement said. . that nuggets sold in supermarkets also exhibit a complete nutritional profile.
DeShazo agrees that not all chicken nuggets are created equal. “There may be healthy chicken nuggets on the market that are not dipped in batter and fried, but grilled or fried,” he says. The goal, he says, is to get people to read and understand food labels. “People should choose the healthier alternative.”
If you're curious, we checked the websites of some major fast food chains. citizen Kingparticipationthe nuggets are made with McDonald's 'premium white meat'brags“USDA Inspected White Meat,” KFCcall out“premium, 100% brisket,” and Chick-Fil-Aexplainsthe nuggets are “all brisket.”
FAQs
Battered and Breaded with: Water, Enriched Flour (Bleached Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Yellow Corn Flour, Bleached Wheat Flour, Food Starch-Modified, Salt, Leavening (Baking Soda, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate, Calcium ...
What is the answer to the chicken nugget math problem? ›
The answer is 43. Solution For any desired number if it is divisible by 3 it can easily be made with 6 and 9 packs, except if the number is 3 itself. If you can't use all six packs then use one 9 pack and you can do the rest with six packs. If the number is not divisible by 3 then use one 20 pack.
What is actually in chicken nuggets? ›
Nervous tissue, connective tissue, bones, tendons, and fat are usually ground up together and then shaped into the common form of bite-sized oval meals. Many studies usually find nuggets that contain more fat than meat, along with some nerves, bones, and connective tissue.
What are the ingredients in chicken nuggets? ›
Ingredients: White Boneless Chicken, Water, Vegetable Oil (canola Oil, Corn Oil, Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil), Enriched Flour (bleached Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Bleached Wheat Flour, Yellow Corn Flour, Vegetable Starch (modified Corn, Wheat, Rice, Pea, ...
What else is in chicken nuggets? ›
McDonald's McNuggets are made with chicken breast meat blended up with seasoning and chicken skin. They also contain potassium chloride — a synthetic salt additive, water, glucose syrup, and vegetable oils, among other ingredients. The breading is made with corn and wheat flour.
What is the chicken nugget challenge? ›
The 50 Nugget Challenge is a challenge where, as the name implies, you eat 50 Chicken McNuggets in a single sitting, several members of the NLSS Crew participated in the challenge.
What is the chicken math saying? ›
Chicken math is the curious and incomprehensible process by which a flock of 5 backyard chickens grows to become 35 in three years. Chicken math stretches the meaning of "A few" to it's very limits. This is a just a few chicks, honey. Chicken math can also be applied to chicken coops and incubators.
Are McNuggets 100% chicken breast? ›
McDonald's Chicken McNuggets®® are made from 100% chicken breast meat. However, as a percentage of the total recipe when the batter, seasoning and oil to cook the nuggets are taken into account, chicken meat constitutes 45% of the total Chicken McNugget®, the other ingredients account for the additional 55%.
Is McDonald's chicken nuggets real or fake? ›
We start with all white-meat chicken cut from the tenderloin, breast and rib and mix it with a marinade for flavor and juiciness and to help them keep their fun shape. Once everything is mixed, we create the four famous Chicken McNuggets® shapes—bell, boot, ball and bone.
Are Chick Fil A chicken nuggets real? ›
Our Chicken
Chick-fil-A sources 100% real, whole, boneless breast of chicken that has never been ground or separated, and that contains no fillers or added steroids or hormones*.
McDonald's Chicken McNuggets® are made with all white meat chicken and no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. The chicken, which is cut from the tenderloin, breast and rib, gets mixed with a marinade for flavor and to help the Chicken McNuggets® keep their fun shapes.
What are chicken free nuggets made of? ›
Ingredients. Water, pea protein (18%), rapeseed oil, gluten-free breadcrumbs (rice flour, chickpea flour, corn starch, salt, dextrose), rice flour, corn starch, onion, salt, natural flavours, pea fibre (0,5%), pea starch (0,5%), stabilizer (methylcellulose).
What can I eat instead of nuggets? ›
Vegetable nuggets: These are made from mashed vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes, and corn, and are often baked or grilled instead of fried. Turkey or chicken burgers: Grilled or baked patties made from lean meat are a healthier alternative to fried burgers. Baked or grilled fi.
How chicken nuggets are made gross? ›
Many fast-food chains use a mixture of flour, sugar, salt, and other additives in their breading. Some even add ingredients like dimethyl polysiloxane, a type of silicone used in cosmetic products, to prevent the oil from foaming during frying.
Who makes McDonald's chicken nuggets? ›
While McDonald's partners with outside manufacturers, including Tyson, for its chicken nuggets and other meats like its sausages, you can't buy frozen chicken nuggets in-store to cook at your leisure. Fortunately, there are plenty of McNugget dupes on the market.
What is the McDonalds nugget math? ›
However, fun math fact—there is a number above which all order numbers are possible. With packs of 9 and 20, that number turns out to be 151. You can't order 151 McNuggets in combinations of 9 and 20, but you can order every number above that.
What is the answer to McDonalds math? ›
Multiplication comes before addition, so you have to multiply one packet of fries by one drink and then add that to one burger. Thus, 5 + (1x10) = 15. It's enough brain-teasing math to work up an appetite.
What are the numbers for McNuggets? ›
McDonald's sells chicken McNuggets in boxes of 6, 9, and 20. As a result, it is possible to purchase certain numbers of nuggets, and impossible to purchase other numbers.
Is there an answer to the chicken or the egg question? ›
BENTON: Yeah, well, the quick answer is the egg, because the chicken is just one of many birds. And of course, all birds, as we well know, lay an egg with a hard shell. So if you're familiar with your breakfast egg, that's pretty much the same for all birds.
