Spicy Fried Chicken Sandwich

Spicy Chicken Sandwich

Who needs to go to Nashville to get a classic meal? Bring the music capital of the world right into your house by making the wildly popular Hot & Mildly Spicy Chicken Sandwich. This is a tame version of the delicious sandwich but if you like it hotter, crank up the cayenne!

Prep Time: 30,   Cook Time: 15 minutes,   Servings: 4

Spicy Fried Chicken Sandwich Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 Cups Flour
  • 1/2 Cup Cornmeal
  • 1 Tbsp Garlic Powder
  • 1/2 Tbsp Cayenne (more if you like it really hot)
  • 1/2 Tbsp Paprika
  • 1 tsp Onion Powder
  • 1 tsp Pepper
  • 1/2 Tbsp Salt 
  • 1 1/2 Cups Buttermilk
  • 1/2 Tbsp Hot Sauce (more if you like it really hot)
  • 4 Boneless Chicken Thighs
  • 5-6 Cups Oil (enough to go 2" up the walls of the pan)

Fried Chicken Basting Sauce Ingredients:

  • ¼ Cup Used Oil
  • ½ tsp Garlic Powder
  • 1 Tbsp Cayenne
  • ½ Tbsp Paprika
  • 1 tsp Chili Powder
  • 1 Tbsp Brown Sugar
  • Buns, Lettuce, Tomato, Pickles, Mayo  

Recipe by: POWDERHOOK

Chicken Sandwich Preparation Instructions:

1. In a big bowl, mix together the flour, cornmeal, garlic powder, cayenne, paprika, onion powder, pepper & salt.

2. In another smaller bowl, mix together the buttermilk & hot sauce.

3. Rinse & clean up the chicken thighs by cutting away any cartilage or big chunks of fat.

4. Set up a dredging station starting with the plate of chicken thighs, then the buttermilk, then the flour mixture, and place a clean plate on the other side for finished thighs.

5. Working one at a time, coat a chicken thigh in the flour mixture, then dip it in the buttermilk for a couple of seconds. Remove from the buttermilk and let drain for a couple seconds. Then add it back to the flour mixture and toss around until it’s coated evenly. Place on the clean plate and start the next thigh.

6. Once all the thighs are coated with breading, place them in the fridge while you clean up and prepare to fry them.

TIP: Placing the chicken in the fridge for at least 30 minutes will help the breading stick to meat. This works especially well for deep frying veggies or fish which tend to lose a lot of breading during frying.

7. Add the oil to a heavy cast iron pan like Cabela’s 10” Deep Skillet over medium high heat. We will be cooking the chicken at 350° but since the temperature will drop when the chicken is added, we want to heat the oil to 375°.

TIP: When you add the cold chicken to the hot oil, it will quickly drop the oil temperature. When you use a heavy pot for the oil, it helps retain as much heat as possible.

8. Once the oil has reached 375°, fry in batches - 2 chicken thighs at a time. The oil will cool off once the chicken is added, so check the temperature a minute into cooking and adjust the heat to try to maintain a temperature of 350°. About 8 minutes

9. Remove the chicken and drain on paper towels or a wire rack. Bring the temperature back up to 375° and repeat the same process with the last 2 thighs.

10. When you’re done frying, allow the oil to cool a bit.

11. To make the basting sauce, take ¼ cup of the frying oil and add it to a small bowl and mix with garlic powder, cayenne, paprika, chili powder, brown sugar & salt to taste.

12. Brush the sauce on each piece of chicken, coating thoroughly.

13. Build you sandwich with your favorite fixings. For a classic sandwich: bottom bun, mayo, tomato, lettuce, hot chicken, pickles and the top bun.

Click to print or download the Spicy Fried Chicken Sandwich recipe