Homemade Chicken Nuggets Bento

I love chicken nuggets. Can't help it - little morsels of fried battered chicken, dipped in sauce - who can resist? The one thing that often holds me back is the suspicion that the chicken in the nugget contains less chicken and more ...?...

I've seen some organic frozen chicken nuggets in the supermarket, but they are very pricey. So, I decided to make some of my own - I don't know why I never thought of it before, since chicken nuggets are just bits of breaded chicken.

I know the classic breadcrumb steps are flour, egg, breadcrumb (or a variation of that) but I have often wondered what it would taste like without the egg...or flour...and just breadcrumb. Call me curious or lazy, whichever works! Since I was down to my last two eggs, and I needed those for later, I decided to try it out. So... I just cut up some chicken thighs into chunks, seasoned it with a little salt and pepper and rolled it in some panko breadcrumbs. I used thigh meat instead of breast as chicken breast tends to get dry when overcooked, and I planned to re-heat the nuggets the next morning. Using a little oil, I pan-fried them until golden and cooked.

Result: They were still tender after being re-heated, but the crumbs weren't that crispy. They still tasted good, though! Next time I will try it with the eggs and flour...

Also in the bento - a little tub of tomato sauce, roasted rosemary potato slices (from last night's dinner), broccoli, baby corn and asparagus. And watermelon triangles for dessert.