Although the beloved character Wallace from David Simon’s quintessential HBO show The Wire was impressed enough with chicken nuggets to believe that the inventor probably made a fortune with the innovation, his Pit colleague D’Angelo quickly corrects the young hopperâitâs the people at the top making money, not the guy who came up with the idea.
DâAngelo wasnât totally right, but he wasn’t far off the mark either. Cornell professor Robert Baker invented and published his chicken invention in 1963. McDonaldâs took the idea, and since it was unpatented, the Clown Prince of Fast Food didnât need to license the process, nationally debuting the McNugget in 1983. Since then, chicken nuggets have become one of the most popular fast-food and at-home proteins. Not only does the deboning process allow for fun, dippable shapes, but chicken nuggets are great for fussy kids and adults looking for a munchies-worthy snack.
