Forget fast food! This spicy crispy chicken sandwich will satisfy all your cravings, the chicken is juicy, flavorful, and the breading is extra crisp and crunchy! Top this with buttery sliced pickles and a tangy slaw and you’ve got a match made in heaven!

I started with a nice pretzel bun but if you can’t find these -brioche buns are just as delicious – these buns have just the right amount of fluffy lightness (I did scoop some bread out of the top bun to make sure the sandwich would all stay together as the toppings are quite heavy). Spread the buns with butter and toast them in the oven so they had a little structure to them. Then went on to build my sandwich with the fried chicken, the hot sauce, the melted gouda cheese, I added the slaw which adds a nice crunch and tang and piled some buttery pickles to finish it off.  I can’t tell you how many people reached out asking us to come over just to eat this sandwich. You guys are going to love this!

If you’re feeling nervous about frying chicken, don’t be! It’s very easy once you get the hang of it. I used a small fryer and slowly placed the chicken in the fryer by moving it back and forth into the hot oil and slowly dropping it in.

Print Recipe

SPICY FRIED CHICKEN SANDWICH WITH TANGY SLAW

Forget fast food! This spicy crispy chicken sandwich will satisfy all your cravings, the chicken is juicy, flavorful, and the breading is extra crisp and crunchy! Top this with buttery sliced pickles and a tangy slaw and you’ve got a match made in heaven!

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Total Time35 minutes mins

Course: Burgers & Sandwiches

Servings: 6

Author: Natasha

Ingredients

• BRINE
• 1 cup of buttermilk
• 1 tbsp siracha or hot sauce
• 4-6 chicken breast cut into tenders
• TO FRY
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup cornstarch
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tsp granulated garlic
• 2 tsp granulated onion powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp black pepper
• TANGY SLAW
• 3 cups shredded cabbage mix I just used a store bought one with carrots, cabbage and kale in the mix to add some variety
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• ½ tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp grainy Dijon mustard
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• TOPPINGS
• Sliced pickles
• Sliced gouda cheese
• Hot sauce
• Brioche or pretzel buns

Instructions

• In a large bowl, whisk together all brine ingredients. Put the chicken strips into the buttermilk brine and allow to soak for 1 hour, or up to 24 hours. (ensure the chicken is completely covered)
• In a separate large bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, pepper, granulated garlic and onion, paprika, cayenne, thyme and pepper.
• Dredge your chicken breasts through the seasoned flour mix, covering each side well in the flour. Set on a clean plate until all chicken is coated in flour. To make the crust extra crispy and crunchy, re-dredge by dipping back in buttermilk brine, shaking off the excess, and coating the chicken in flour once again, and allowing to rest on a plate, repeating until all the chicken is re-dredged. Let the chicken rest on the plate for ten minutes as your oil is heating up to temperature.
• In a large heavy bottom pot or Dutch oven, heat 5-6 cups of vegetable oil to 325 degrees F. (If you have a fryer, even better) Have a wire rack sitting in the oven (turn oven to 200 degrees to keep chicken warm while you finish cooking all the pieces) ready for the chicken.
• Once oil is to temperature, add two chicken breasts to the oil and allow to fry for 5-6 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. Place on the wire rack in the oven to drain the excess oil and keep warm.
• To melt cheese onto the chicken, top chicken with sliced cheese and place on a baking sheet. Put into the oven on low broil to melt the cheese. Keep an eye on it, melting won’t take more than a minute or two
• Assemble sandwiches with preferred toppings and extra hot sauce smeared on both buns, top and bottom. Serve hot.