Recipes
Nashville Hot Chicken Sliders by Monica
Our family loves a lot of flavor – especially things that are hot and spicy. So, of course, we love Nashville Hot Chicken and these Sliders! But the greatest thing about this recipe is that most of the heat is in the Nashville Hot Glaze – so you can leave that off or substitute a favorite barbecue or other sauce for the kids or anyone who doesn’t like the spiciness. No matter what you put on these tenders, the extra flavor you’ll get from frying them in Bacon Up Bacon Grease is sure to please everyone! Serving suggestion: These sliders are delicious served with Potato Tots fried in Bacon Up. Get double duty out of the Bacon Up in your frying pan and enjoy the amazing combination!
Equipment
- 2 shallow dishes or pans for dredging
- baking sheet lined with parchment or wax paper
- baking sheet lined with paper towels
- Dutch oven or large frying pan, at least 3" high to fry in - must hold 2" of hot bacon grease
- tongs
- decorative sandwich picks for attaching pickle slice to top bun of assembled sliders
Ingredients
For the seasoned dredge
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
For the wet mixture:
- 2 cups buttermilk
- ¼ cup hot sauce like Tabasco or Frank’s
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
For the fried chicken:
- 10 skinless, boneless chicken tenders or thighs (or 3 chicken breasts, butterflied and cut into tender-sized strips)
- 1-2 cups Bacon Up® Bacon Grease for frying enough to fill pan to 2" when melted
For the Nashville Hot Glaze:
- ½ cup of your hot Bacon Up from the fryer
- 2 to 6 tablespoons cayenne pepper depending on your heat preference
- 1 to 2 tablespoons brown sugar depending on how sweet you’d like it
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- OR: 4-6 tablespoons of your favorite Nashville Hot Chicken spice blend
- PLUS: 2-4 tablespoons of honey
Instructions
To bread the chicken:
- In the first of two shallow dishes or pans, whisk together the flour, cayenne pepper, paprika, salt, and black pepper.
- In the second shallow dish or pan, whisk together the buttermilk, hot sauce, eggs and salt
- Prepare a large baking sheet with a piece of parchment or wax paper.
- Dredge each piece of chicken – first in the dry mixture, turning to coat both the top and bottom; then soak both sides in the buttermilk mixture and let the excess drip off, then returning to the dry mixture and dredging both sides again.
- Place each dredged piece on the baking sheet and let them rest as you repeat with the other pieces and heat your oil. This will help the breading stick to the chicken.
To fry the chicken:
- Using a Dutch oven or deep skillet at least three inches tall, add enough Bacon Up to reach two inches when melted.
- Monitoring with a deep-frying thermometer, heat the Bacon Up on high until it reaches 350° F.
- Once the Bacon Up has reached the desired temperature, gently slide the first batch of tenders into the oil using tongs, being careful not to splash the oil.
- Fry for about 3 minutes, turn, and fry the second side for about 3 minutes.
- Monitor the temperature of the oil throughout the frying, maintaining 350°F by adjusting the heat up or down as needed.
- When it is golden brown and the internal temperature is 165°F (160°F for white meat), move to a wire rack on a baking sheet lined with paper towels, and repeat with additional batches until all the tenders are fried.
To make the Nashville Hot Glaze:
- After the oil has cooled for 5-10 minutes. carefully ladle out ½ cup of the hot Bacon Up from the frying pan into a sauce pan.
- EITHER USE A PREPARED SEASONING MIX PLUS HONEY --adding 4-6 tablespoons of your favorite Nashville Hot Chicken seasoning mix and 2-4 tablespoons of honey to the hot oil, and stirring to make the glaze
- OR MAKE YOUR OWN SPICY SEASONING MIX FROM SCRATCH with the ingredients listed in this recipe, adding the cayenne pepper, brown sugar, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt and pepper to the saucepan, and stirring to make the glaze.
- Whichever method you choose, you want the glaze to be thin enough to easily brush on, but thick enough to stick to the chicken. You can adjust the thickness by adding more oil or more sugar and spice, as needed.
To make the Sliders:
- Brush the chicken with the Nashville Hot Glaze, covering the entire surface.
- Place 1-2 tenders on each slider bun, and add a pickle slice.
Video
Notes
We love using tenders for this recipe and putting them on slider buns – but of course, you can use chicken thighs or even breasts (but we recommend cutting breasts into tender-sized strips). Larger buns are also an alternative for those who want bigger sandwiches - just be sure to plan the number of tenders you prepare accordingly!
