National Chicken Nugget Day Party History

Opening Thoughts

Well I have no idea the first time I had a chicken nugget, but that's where we should start because I think most people would say the same. And that's the novelty. For most of us (at least most of us growing up in the U.S.) chicken nuggets were so integral to our childhood that they invoke (hopefully fond) memories that we often can't specifically place that give us comfort. They're the food eaten when all other possible foods were thought of as too gross, too healthy, or just too complicated. They're the Burger King (or McDonald's, I guess) treat we so craved and then more than likely overindulged in after gaining the ability to literally taste that freedom in high school and/or college. They're the thing many a 20-something still keeps in our freezer for when life gets a bit too real. And eventually we'll all pass that love and comfort in one way or another to the next generation, hoping that it's not just chicken nuggets that they crave, but knowing all too well it's a very real possibility.

That's what this party is about. While it teters towards overindulgence and ridiculousness, it's not about eating the most, dressing the best, or drinking the quickest. In the end it's about chasing the whimsy of a child's craving for chicken nuggets and the comfort we all know so well it can provide. That's where the traditions come from and that's what the traditions should always represent.

2017: A Beginning "Party"

This one wasn't really a party in the most traditional sense, but truly one of the best times I could ever have. I was working at a camp in the offseason at their outdoor education center and since it was in October (this is the only instance to not take place in November), we were kind of slowing down for the season, so we had some free time on our hands. I had heard previously of the concept of a "Chicken Nugget Power Hour" which was like a traditional "Power Hour" but with a chicken nugget each minute rather than a shot of beer.

Four of us decided to take this challenge on, so after a trip to the local Target and the quick cooking of 250+ chicken nuggets (a mix of dino and regular) using the camp kitchen's convection oven, we were ready to begin. We put on this (truly) Totally Rad 90s Power Hour and after the brief intro got started... But wait, there's a few important notes - none of us thought this would be that hard, so we all ate a light dinner beforehand, I recall mine being mostly vegetables. We also had a crowd of maybe 10 or so of our colleagues also watching, which was more encouraging and made it closer to a party if anything.

The first 10 nuggets were no problem, and we were jamming and dipping to the songs of our youth. The next 10 got a bit more difficult, and by the mid 20's one of the four of us had already tapped out. Then it just got worse. I know, I know you're saying 30 really isn't that bad, but eating one consistently each minute is draining. Every breath you take tastes like chicken nuggets. You run to the bathroom and wash your face, but it's back immediately, and you need to be back within that one minute window. Anyway, two others dropped out somewhere in the 30's, so it was just me for a while to try to get to that magical 60 number. 

Long story short, I didn't make it. I got to 55 and I'm glad I quit. I did receive some inspiration by a special visit from the head chef who delivered some sweet chili sauce (which was beyond sweet in more ways than one), but at the 55 nugget mark, the wifi cut out and the power hour playlist paused. This was the sign from the universe that it was time to stop and that's for the best because it was no longer comfortable by any means (and if you don't get why that's important, please read the first section). I made the mistake to think that it was about conquering chicken nuggets and the glory of eating, but I learned and quit while I was as ahead as I could be. And I look fondly on that time, not because I'm proud that I almost got there, but because I was proud I could throw in the towel. I could do what I was comfortable doing and that's what the celebration became about in future years. Minimal pretense, few specific requirements, just the ability for people to celebrate the comfort and whimsy of the chicken nugget however they see fit.

2019: A First Real Party

So this one just happened because I really wanted to throw a party in the apartment I was living in. Now I was in DC, I had started a new job the summer before and wanted to invite everyone over to have a good time together. I ordered a large delivery order from Safeway with plenty of frozen nuggets (in addition to a few veggie ones I had procured separtely), and two friends and I got to cleaning the apartment, cooking, and celeberating as best we could! Music was provided via a Baha Men playlist on Pandora Premium, which was probably the best soundtrack this party has (or ever will) have.

A few important traditions started during this edition:

• The drawing of fist nuggets (get it? like hand turkeys?)

• The consumptions of Prairie Chickens

• Dancing, at some point, to the Macarena

• Generally yelling at people who are too close to the oven while it's on - it's a hot oven, and we've got nuggets to bake!

A few other great (and not so great) things happened, but for better or worse have not been brought back into future incarnations:

• A friend had tiny syringes she used to give shots to her cat, so brought a clean one to inject alcohol into chicken nuggets for mini-shots

• The consumption of the bock-bock - which was a Bock beer followed by a chicken nugget

• Playing "sauce pong" - for cleanliness reasons this, in particular, was explicitly banned at future incarnations

2020: A Pandemic Attempt

This year wasn't exactly one for social events, so didn't try to do a party this year, but word had already spread so people wanted to do something. This resulted in a half-hearted attempt to organize a Zoom lunch with some work colleagues where we'd all eat chicken nuggets. I think 4 or 5 people attended, maybe only one of whom actually ate chicken nuggets, but, hey, it was something, and a lot of other things didn't happen at all that year.

2021: Hosting at a Bar

By November of 2021, it didn't feel as weird to go inside to a bar and, mainly because no one had any desire or capability to host it at their apartment, that's what we decided to do! After some calling around and getting a few quotes, the easiest option was to go to a bar didn't serve food (so we could bring our own) and let us reserve some space for free. It wasn't a private room or anything, but I was told we could reserve the nearby dartboards and a nearby shuffleboard.

Now you may be asking yourself - "how on earth did you transport 20-30 people's worth of chicken nuggets into a bar and keep them foodsafe for multiple hours?" Well I'm glad you asked, because I did a lot of research on how to make this as reasonably safe as possible and the answer ended up being a tightly packed cooler with hot towels. Similarly to how a thermos can keep things hot or cold, a cooler (or should I say a "heater" in this situation) functions similarly. After priming it with some near boiling water, we stuck the nuggets in right after they were cooked and kept them tightly packed. Did it work perfectly? Almost certainly not. Did it work OK? Yeah, more or less, from what I heard no one got significantly sick from the nuggets and we were able to feed some particularly drunk patrons and a few bar staff as well!

Hosting at a bar did have some adverse affects, notably not being able to do any of the traditions from 2019 with the exception of drawing of fist nuggets. Sadly the drawings were lost as it turns out its not easy to carry a cooler out of a bar and remember everything. We also had some extra visitors, for better and worse, since we were at the bar, but overall plenty of nuggets were still eaten and a good time was had by all (though not enough people brought their own sauce).