I made frozen chicken nuggets using 4 different cooking methods, and the air fryer and convection oven produced the tastiest results

Victoria MontaltiMar 18, 2022, 23:32 IST

Insider reporter Victoria Montalti cooked frozen chicken nuggets four ways: in a microwave, toaster oven, convection oven, and air fryer.Victoria Montalti/Insider

This Frozen Food Month, I decided to find out the best way to cook frozen chicken nuggets.
I compared nuggets that were cooked by a microwave, toaster oven, convection oven, and air fryer.

I picked up Perdue's frozen chicken-breast nuggets to test the best ways to cook them.

A package of Perdue's frozen chicken-breast nuggets.Victoria Montalti/Insider

The instructions were easy to follow and surprisingly included air-fryer conversions too.

The frozen chicken package included directions for how to heat them in an oven or toaster oven, a microwave, and surprisingly, an air fryer.Victoria Montalti/Insider

I first tested the microwaving method, which I was very wary about.

I put the nuggets on a paper plate, rather than the packaging tray, and cooked them for three minutes.Victoria Montalti/Insider

Next, I created a vessel for the nuggets to cook evenly in a toaster oven.

I placed my nuggets on aluminum foil in the toaster oven before setting them to bake.Victoria Montalti/Insider

Then I tested the promising oven method, using a convection oven.

Although not required, I sprayed PAM on the baking tray so the chicken nuggets wouldn't stick while baking.Victoria Montalti/Insider

I was excited to cook chicken nuggets in the air fryer for the first time.

I preheated the air fryer before spraying it with PAM and setting the nuggets to cook.Victoria Montalti/Insider

The different methods gave the nuggets a similar appearance, but I thought the microwaved ones looked very unappetizing.

The cooked nuggets looked similar, but the microwaved ones looked pale and shrunken and the air-fried ones looked broiled.Victoria Montalti/Insider

Both the microwave and toaster-oven nuggets were mushy. I'll never be microwaving my nuggets again.

The microwaved nuggets had a dense and grey interior while the toaster oven nuggets had a shredded, realistic meat appearance.Victoria Montalti/Insider

The oven-baked and air-fried nuggets were juicy and crispy and everything I desired.

Both the oven-baked and air-fried nuggets were similar and were good quality.Victoria Montalti/Insider

Verdict: The oven and air-fryer methods hands down tied for the win, and they were worth the extra cooking time.

The nuggets cooked in the oven and the air fryer were the best.Victoria Montalti/Insider

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