Are Chicken Nuggets Healthier Than Fillet Steak?

Now on the face of it, this might seem a reet daft question – as we say in Yorkshire – but is it really?

Let’s dive in.
There are six nutritional essentials we need to stay alive:
Water
Protein
Carbohydrate
Fats
Vitamins
Minerals

So how do nuggets and steak compare?
1) Water
Both can have water added to improve tenderness and increase weight.
Verdict: call that a draw.

2) Protein
Here’s where it gets interesting.
Fillet steak is pure muscle and delivers around 30g of high-quality protein per 100g, with all nine essential amino acids – ideal for muscle repair and maintenance.

Nuggets average 15–20g depending on how they’re made and likely include proteins from skin and connective tissue as well as muscle.

Verdict: while steak gives you premium-quality protein, it’s also fairly narrow spectrum. Nuggets made from more of the chicken body offer a broader protein mix – including collagen, which is the same stuff found in supplements.

3) Carbohydrate
Steak: virtually none – pure protein and fat.

Nuggets: batter and coatings add around 10–15g of carbs, mostly refined starch and breadcrumbs. They add crunch and colour but little in the way of nutrition.

Verdict: steak keeps it clean – no empty carbs, fillers, or unnecessary chemicals.

4) Fats
Steak naturally contains a balance of saturated and monounsaturated fats, similar to olive oil in ratio.

Nuggets contain fats from chicken skin (not all bad) plus whatever oil they’re fried in – often refined vegetable or seed oils high in omega-6. These can oxidise under heat, and the crumb soaks up even more.

Verdict: steak is the clear winner – real fat, not fryer fat.

5) Vitamins
Beef is one of the richest natural sources of vitamin B12 in an easily absorbed form. It also brings solid amounts of B3 and B6, plus a little vitamin D and fat-soluble vitamins if the animal was grass-fed. These nutrients come packaged in their natural context.

Chicken has B vitamins too, but much is lost through processing and high-heat frying. Fortification isn't as bioavailable as in whole meat. Skin and connective tissue might add traces of A and K2, but it’s minimal once breaded and fried.

Verdict: steak wins decisively – more vitamins, in a form your body can recognise.

6) Minerals
Again more nuanced. Using more of the animal (skin, cartilage, bone) can introduce minerals you don’t get much of from lean steak alone.
But steak remains richer in bioavailable haem iron, zinc, and selenium – the minerals most people fall short on.

Verdict: steak leads overall, though whole-bird nuggets may offer a broader mineral mix.

Conclusion
If your nuggets were made from the whole body of an organic chicken, coated in wholemeal breadcrumbs and fried in beef fat or olive oil, they’d be nearly as healthy as a similarly raised steak.

But in the real world? Steak remains the nutritional heavyweight. Nuggets only catch up when we use the whole bird + process wisely.