Hot Chicken Sliders Set to Hit the Ballpark This Weekend

Hot chicken is currently popular among foodies, but it is not a passing fad. This spicy fried bird has been scorching the taste buds of Nashville residents for generations. You can cook large chicken pieces hot or reduce them to appetizer size for a party. Bring a tiny piece of Nashville into your home with this hot chicken slider recipe. (This makes a great football-watching snack, even if you’re not a Titans fan.)

I once visited Nashville. This was during the surreal times of COVID, and I was ready to see something other than the inside of my apartment. The food there causes some excitement, but initially I decided to pursue my other interests: visiting the Picasso exhibition at the Frist Art Museum. This part of the trip was inspiring, but quickly overshadowed by my discovery of their hot chicken (and pretty tasty ramen, but another time). You see, fate played its role. I ended up booking an Airbnb apartment with a balcony—a balcony from which I could look into the beer garden and see that Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack was a success. Hot chicken is known to have originated with Prince, so I knew where to go.

What is hot chicken?

Hot Chicken starts with buttermilk fried chicken, just like many other recipes. A little heat is added to the marinade and breading, but the special, questionable spice comes from the cayenne oil paste that is used to smother the chicken after frying. Hot chicken levels range from mild, light, medium, hot and up to xxx hot. I thought I was being conservative and ordered medium. I almost couldn’t finish the chicken due to my runny nose and mouth covered in cayenne pepper. It will be easier for you to cope with the heat at home.

I give a range of cayenne sauce sizes. I used the smallest size and thought it was perfect. The spice is barely noticeable after the first bite, but there is a gradual warm sensation after chewing. By the time you’re halfway through the slider, you’ll feel it. You can adjust the amount of hot sauce or cayenne pepper powder in any part of this recipe, or omit them all together, and it will still be a wonderful piece of fried chicken.

How to Make Hot Chicken Sliders

1. Prepare the marinade

Combine the buttermilk, pickle juice and hot sauce in a bowl and add the chicken pieces. I took a pound of boneless, skinless chicken thighs and cut them into twelve two- to three-inch pieces. They should be small; it is a slider after all. Cover the bowl and let the chicken marinate in the refrigerator overnight or for at least an hour.

2. Bread the chicken

Mix dry ingredients together. I add a couple tablespoons of potato starch for extra crunch, but you can substitute cornstarch or just forget about it and use flour instead. Place a parchment-lined baking sheet next to the pan with the dry mixture and next to the bowl of marinated chicken. Remove the chicken, shake off any excess buttermilk into a bowl and dredge it in flour. Transfer chicken to parchment paper. Once all the chicken pieces are on the parchment, add the egg to the remaining wet mixture. Whisk. Dip the chicken into the wet mixture, then back into the dry mixture for a second layer. Leave the breaded chicken on the parchment paper and dry it out a little while you heat the oil and prepare the finishing sauce.

3. Prepare cayenne sauce and heat oil.

Fill a heavy-bottomed pan with about two to three inches of vegetable or canola oil for deep frying. Set the heat to medium and monitor it with a thermometer. While it is heating, add the sauce ingredients to the pan. Turn on low to melt the butter, then turn off. Later you will add the hot “dirty” oil from frying the chicken and this will complete the sauce.

4. Roast the bird

Roast chicken three to four at a time at 340 to 350°F. My chicken averaged about two minutes per side until cooked through and browned. Keep a thermometer in the pan while you cook; You may have to hold the flame a little to maintain a consistent temperature range. Drain and cool chicken on a wire rack.

5. Pour cayenne sauce over chicken.

Once the chicken is fried and you are ready to assemble the sliders, add a quarter cup of hot frying oil to the cayenne oil sauce. It should look red and a little dirty. Using a pastry brush, brush one side of the fried chicken with the cayenne butter sauce, making sure to coat the chicken with the residue and not just the oil. Place chicken on separated slider buns, sauce side down. Brush the other side while it is on the bun to allow any excess spiced butter to drip into the bun. Place sliced ​​sour pickles on top.

The chicken is crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. The breading is so flavorful that it’s almost a treat in itself. The butter is spicy and salty, with just enough sweetness to balance it out. If you really like the Nashville treatment, I recommend increasing the amount of cayenne pepper in the sauce to three tablespoons or higher to properly ignite your mouth.

Hot Chicken Slices Recipe

Ingredients:

Marinade

• ¾ cup buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons brine
• 2 tablespoons hot sauce
• 1 pound chicken thighs, cut into 12 two- or three-inch pieces.
• 1 egg (add in step 2)

Dry dredger

• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons potato starch
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt

Spicy sauce

• 4 tablespoons butter
• ¼ cup dirty vegetable oil
• 1-5 tablespoons cayenne pepper (adjust heat to taste. I used 1 tablespoon).
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• Neutral oil for frying (canola or vegetable oil will work).
• 12 slider buns
• Slices of marinade for filling

1. In a large bowl, combine buttermilk, brine and hot sauce. Submerge the chicken pieces in the marinade, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight or for at least one hour.

2. Combine dry dredge ingredients in a shallow bowl. Line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper. Shake the excess buttermilk off the chicken pieces and dip them into the dry mixture. Shake off excess flour and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Add the egg to the remaining buttermilk mixture. Pass the chicken through the egg and flour mixture for a second coating. Place all the chicken pieces on a baking sheet to rest and dry out while the oil heats up and you prepare the hot sauce.

3. Add enough oil to a heavy-bottomed pan to fill it two to three inches. Heat it over medium heat to 340-350°F. While it is heating, prepare the hot sauce. Add the butter, sugar and spices to a small saucepan and heat slightly until the butter melts.

4. Grill the chicken at 340 to 350°F for about two minutes on each side until browned and cooked through. Place them on a wire rack to drain and cool. Add a quarter cup of the used frying oil to the hot sauce and stir.

5. Assemble the sliders. Using a pastry brush, brush one side of the fried chicken with the hot sauce. Place them on the buns, sauce side down. Brush the other side generously with sauce. Serve chicken strips with sliced ​​pickles.