Nashville Hot Chicken

• servings: 4 servings
• active time: 1 hour 10 minutes
• total time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup buttermilk (8 oz, $0.70*)

¼ cup pickle juice (from the pickle chips, 2 oz, $0.14)

¼ cup hot sauce (any kind, 2 oz, $0.60)

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (1.5lb, 680g, $3.52**)

1 cup all-purpose flour (120g, $0.13***)

¼ cup cornstarch (30g, $0.14)

1 tsp baking powder ($0.04)

2 cups vegetable oil (16 oz, $1.28***)

2 Tbsp cayenne ($0.84)

1 tsp brown sugar ($0.01)

½ Tbsp paprika ($0.30)

1 Tbsp chili powder ($0.19)

1 Tbsp garlic powder ($0.06)

½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper ($0.08)

1 Tbsp salt (divided, $0.12)

4 pieces of Texas bread (thick sliced bread, $0.87)

8 pickle chips (sliced pickles, $0.19)

Directions

Mix

Gather all ingredients. Mix the buttermilk, pickle juice, and hot sauce (I used Frank's hot sauce, but you can use any kind) in a Ziploc bag or large bowl. Add the chicken thighs and toss to coat. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Whisk

Once the chicken has marinated for an hour, strain the buttermilk brine into a clean bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and ½ tablespoon of salt.

Coat

Dredge each chicken thigh in the flour mixture, dip back into the buttermilk, then coat again in flour, pressing to adhere. Place the breaded chicken on a clean plate and repeat with the remaining pieces until ready to fry.

Cook

Fill a heavy-bottomed skillet with vegetable oil, about 1/3 of the way up. Heat oil to 350°F over medium-high heat. I use an instant-read thermometer to check the temperature of the oil. Once the oil is hot, carefully place two chicken thighs into the oil. Do not move the chicken for at least 3 minutes, or you may knock off the coating.

Fry until one side is golden brown, about 4-5 minutes. Using tongs, gently flip the chicken and continue cooking until an instant-read thermometer reads 165° F, 4-5 minutes.

Finish

Once the chicken is done frying, remove it to a wire rack. Continue frying the last two chicken thighs and remove them from the skillet once they are done.

Mix

In another bowl, combine the cayenne, brown sugar, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, pepper, and remaining salt.

Brush

Once the chicken is finished cooking, turn off the heat. Carefully whisk ½ cup of the hot reserved oil into the spice blend, then brush it over both sides of the chicken. Serve over white bread and top with pickle chips.

Notes

If buttermilk isn’t something you usually keep in your kitchen, you can make your own by combining 1 cup of milk with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes before using.

**Depending on the thickness of your chicken thighs, they may take less or more time to cook in the oil. The most important part is that they reach an internal temperature of 165°F.

***2 cups of vegetable oil was the perfect amount of oil to shallow fry the chicken thighs in. If you need to add more, you can. Make sure to maintain the oil temperature at 350°F while cooking. Also, 1 cup of flour was the perfect amount to double coat my chicken. If you get larger pieces of chicken, you may need to add more flour to fully cover every piece.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 sandwich
• Calories: 833 kcal
• Total Fat: 62 g
• Sodium: 2786 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 42 g
• Dietary Fiber: 3 g
• Protein: 28 g