You Only Need 2 Ingredients To Transform Store-Bought Chicken Nuggets Into A Satisfying Appetizer

Chicken nuggets aren't often thought of as something you would want to serve at a dinner party. They're the stuff of late night cravings, quick snacks, guilty pleasures, and annoyingly picky children. Yet they persist in our freezers and fast food joints thanks to the public's continued enthusiasm for the meaty little chunks. If you're a fan of the to-go variety, Chowhound has created the definitive ranking of fast food chicken nuggets and tenders. There's even an interesting story behind McDonald's McNuggets shapes. They're called the boot, the ball, the bell, and the bowtie (who knew?).

Frozen chicken nuggets from the store can be great in a pinch, but they're often on the bland side. So, when you're making store-bought chicken nuggets at home and you want to dress them up to near elegance, just think of them as another ingredient in a nice little appetizer. Add a sauce and cheese to your chicken nuggets and roast on the flavor. Each bite will be totally packed with layers of savory notes, no extra dipping sauce necessary. These upgraded store-bought chicken nugget aperitifs only take a few extra minutes, a couple of extra ingredients you may already have at home, and very little prep. Here's how to turn your simple nuggets into a next-level appetizer. 

While we will be adding layers of flavor, you don't want to start with a chicken nugget that's completely bland or near inedible, so buy something that performed well in our ranking of store-bought chicken nuggets from worst to best. Once you have that, pretty much any sauce and cheese combo you like can work atop your nuggets. You'll cook them according to the directions on the package, add your toppings, then let them roast again until the cheese is melted. It's incredibly simple and downright transformative.

Turn your chicken nuggets into tiny chicken Parm poppers with a spoonful of marinara and a sprinkle of shredded Parmesan. You don't want to burn the nuggets, but if you take them out a couple minutes before they're completely done, then roast them a few minutes beyond the total cook time, you can get the Parmesan downright crispy on top. An addition of mozzarella underneath the Parmesan will up the ante even more, and you can even serve them over pasta with extra sauce for a full chicken Parmesan meal.

If you're a fan of Buffalo wings, top your store-bought nuggets with Buffalo sauce and crumbled blue cheese. You'll love the extra flavor the oven melt brings out of the blue cheese. On the milder side, emulate a lemon pepper crusted chicken breast with a shake of lemon pepper seasoning and shredded Parmesan. Or go for classic barbecue flavors with barbecue sauce topped with cheddar cheese. When you have a bag of store-bought chicken nuggets in the freezer and some cheese and sauce in the fridge, there's really no wrong route to take.