This spicy chicken sandwich are known for two things – heat and flavor! I often use my brioche buns recipe or my hot dog buns recipe to make the buns, but you can use any burger buns of your choice.
Spicy chicken sandwich
Fried chicken (and fried chicken sandwich) ranks very highly on the list of favorite comfort food for most people, without a doubt. And why not? When done right, it’s a glorious marriage of flavors and textures. And these are truly one of our favorite homemade lunch ideas, because they are so filling and flavorful! I started making my own fried chicken when I used to live in Lismore (in Australia), because the KFC there was just too bland to justify parting with my money over it. Plus, making it home meant that I could spice it up however I wanted (these taco spiced baked chicken tenders and spicy cumin popcorn chicken were two favorites of mine!), and do some experimenting along the way. One result of that would be this crunchy, crispy fried chicken marinated with all the flavors of bloody mary and scotch, that I shared recently in my fried chicken and waffles post.
Nashville hot chicken sandwich
Thankfully, Mr K isn’t the biggest KFC fan either, and prefers homemade crunchy fried chicken. And in our quest to find more amazing fried chicken flavors and recipes, I came across Hattie B’s Nashville Hot Chicken! Everything about that hot chicken called out to me, and I just HAD to make it. And things just haven’t been the same again around these parts. After tweaking it to our taste, and making it over and over again – this is the ONLY Spicy Chicken Sandwich that I see myself making for the rest of our lives! And to make this recipe that much more tantalizing, I went ahead and also made Nashville-style Hot Chicken Sandwiches with pickles and sour cream ranch dressing! So PIN this recipe, bookmark it, save it, do whatever you have to, so that you don’t lose it. ‘Cause if you love spicy fried chicken, then this Nashville hot chicken is your jam. And as far as spicy fried chicken go, I should know what I’m talking about. Having lived in Sri Lanka, the only fried chicken there is spicy. The heat/spice level there ranges from mild to hot, which for the rest of the world would be hot to burning hot. So when I say this is the best spicy chicken sandwich, I’m not playing! 🙂 But hey, the good news is that you can change the spice level from extra hot to just hot, by reducing the amount of cayenne pepper. If you want just mildly spicy fried chicken however… this isn’t the recipe for you, I’m afraid. While Hattie B’s hot chicken recipe is what I fell in love with, hot chicken was reportedly first invented by Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack in Nashville, TN. It’s a Nashville classic and as much as I’d love to talk about the history of it, I feel like these guys do a much better job of it here.
Type of chicken cut to use for this recipe
You can use either chicken breast (white meat) or chicken thighs (red meat) for this Nashville hot chicken sandwich recipe. I chose chicken breast because it’s just my personal preference. However, with chicken breast, you have to be a little careful not to overcook the chicken. You won’t have that problem with chicken thighs however, so you’re welcome to use whichever cut you prefer.
My tips to make the BEST spicy chicken sandwich
You need to heat the oil that you use for deep frying to about 380-400°F. This is because the oil temperature drops when you add anything to it. By heating the oil to a higher temperature, you ensure that the oil will reach the optimum temperature of 350°F/180°C when you add the pieces of chicken to it. When cooked at this optimum temperature, the chicken will be crispy while being as less oily as possible. This is also why you should NEVER overcrowd the pot either. If the oil temperate drops below 350°F/180°C for too long, the chicken will be oily and soggy. To drain the chicken, place paper towels on a tray and then a wire rack over that. The fried chicken pieces can be kept on the wire rack, to drain, while maintaining their crispness. The hot sauce for this spicy fried chicken is BEST brushed on the chicken while it’s still hot! It tastes better and the spices have a chance to really penetrate the crispy coating too. Since the sauce is fat based, and applied while the chicken is hot, it keeps the coating crispy as well.
I particularly LOVED pairing this hot and spicy chicken sandwich with the cool ranch dressing that I made with sour cream! It’s full of herbs, and is cool and tangy and is just a heavenly pairing with the hot spicy fried chicken. If you liked these hot and spicy chicken sandwiches (Nashville hot chicken sandwich), don’t forget to subscribe for new (and free) recipes by entering your email address on the side bar (and get all these recipes delivered straight to your inbox), so you don’t miss out on a thing. You can find me on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, PINTEREST, YOU TUBE and GOOGLE-PLUS too.
