Review: Burger King Ghost Pepper Chicken Nuggets

Bottom Line: Burger King fries up better than average chicken nuggets and the Ghost Pepper version delivers a bit of a kick.

There are plenty of poultry products out there in the drive thru, from chicken sandwiches to wings to fried chicken. And of course, there are the ubiquitous chicken nuggets. These are the staple of kids’ meals and the children of this country have devoured enough of these to keep chicken farms clucking into the next millennium. But the fast food joints do try to appeal to adult tastes from time to time with their nuggets, and Burger King’s new Ghost Pepper version is designed for those who like a kick with their chicken bites.

The King gives the following description for these spicy nuggets on his website:

Made with white meat chicken kicked up with fiery ghost pepper, our Ghost Pepper Chicken Nuggets are the perfect balance between flavor and heat.

I have to confess that I am not a nuggets fan, and those that I like least of all are the most popular ones fried up by the Golden Arches. I do find the King’s nuggets more palatable but rarely do I order them while in the drive thru (I finished off enough nuggets left over by my kids to last a lifetime). Unlike the McNugget which is battered and fried, BK’s chicken bites are breaded and include breadcrumbs. This gives them a nice crispiness wrapped around the ground chicken inside. The meat has the sponginess you expect from a nugget, though it does have decent taste.

Heat-wise, you may be expecting more of a burn from something that has Ghost Pepper in its name, but remember that you are ordering these from an establishment that caters to the average consumer. These actually do have a bit of a kick, but they are approaching medium heat at best. The bite from the seasoning adds some flavor and acts as a good offset to the saltiness of the nuggets, and I consider these rather tasty. It’s been a while since I tried BK’s regular spicy nuggets, so I can’t say how the Ghost Pepper version compares to those, but it does bring some heat that lingers a bit. It is nothing that will scare off chiliheads, but the average mortal may consider these to be around the hot level.

Where these nuggets really deliver the punch is the value. At a buck and a half for an eight-piece order, that’s a heck of a deal and a great way to fill up cheap. Add on a medium order of fries or a double cheeseburger for another couple of bucks for a good fast food score under four dollars. If you are watching your belt size, though, you will want to go with a small order of fries to keep the calories from adding up. And if you are watching your sodium intake, the four-piece is the better choice because eight of these pack in over 900mg.

The Ghost Pepper nuggets are yet another item that will head off to Limited-Time-Only-Ville at some point, probably sooner rather than later (these appear to be a Halloween-themed item based on the ghosts in the ads). If you are a nugget lover and also like some heat with your chicken, these are definitely for you. And even if the poultry pieces are not part of your regular fast food order–like me–you still may find these rather tasty. So grab them while they are still available because they will disappear like a ghost before too long.  Now if only we could get that creepy king mascot to fade away as well . . .

Tale of the Tape:

Serving Size: 8 Nuggets
Calories: 407
Fat: 28g (5g Sat/1 Trans)
Protein: 17g
Carbs: 22g
Sodium: 904mg