savory

Kid-Friendly Air Fryer Pork Nuggets

Ingredients

Before we get cooking, here’s everything you need. Check items off as you go — at home or in the store.

Place pork tenderloin on a cutting board. Cut into small bite-sized pieces (about 1 inch square); transfer pieces into a large bowl. Add buttermilk, egg, paprika, garlic powder, ½ tsp salt and ¼ tsp black pepper. Mix well to combine. Cover bowl and set aside to marinate for 1 hour or, for best results, marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
Preheat oven to 400° F or an air fryer to 375° F. Once pork has marinated, place panko breadcrumbs, traditional breadcrumbs, Italian seasoning and olive oil in a large plastic freezer bag. Seal the bag shut; shake mixture well to combine. Place ⅓ of the pork pieces into the bag and reclose. Shake thoroughly (this is a great job for little helpers!) until pork pieces are fully coated. Open the bag, and by hand carefully transfer pork pieces one at a time onto a parchment-lined baking sheet or into an air fryer basket. Repeat this step with remaining pork pieces until all pieces are coated. Please note: To avoid overcrowding the bag, coat only 1/3 of the pork pieces at once.
Bake pork nuggets in preheated oven for 20 minutes OR air fry for 20 minutes. Cook pork until internal temperature reaches 145° F, followed by a 3-minute rest.