If you’re hankering for a hot chicken sandwich, but don’t feel like going out, we’ve got a solution for you: Make yourself a spicy sandwich at home. To help you out, we spoke to Miguel Banuelos, executive chef at Chickadees Chicken and Fries, an Old Town Scottsdale spot that opened on Labor Day weekend. He graciously shared one of the chicken sandwich recipes with us.
Banuelos offers a couple of tips when making the sandwich at home. “Make sure you don’t undercook the chicken and use a thermometer,” he says. “Also, use enough oil to submerge the chicken so it cooks evenly.”
And if you want your sammie a little hotter, Banuelos says to add some white pepper or cayenne to the flour. “But a little bit goes a long way.”
Chickadees Hottie Sandwich
Two 5-oz. chicken breasts, sliced thin
Breading
2 cups all purpose flour
¼ cup garlic powder
1 tbsp. coarse black pepper
1 tbsp. paprika
½ tbsp. poultry seasoning
1 tbsp. Cajun seasoning
1 tbsp. onion powder|
1 tbsp. coarse sea salt
Prep Steps for Breading
Using a whisk, blend all ingredients together thoroughly.
Egg Wash
6 large brown eggs, whisked
1 oz. Frank’s Red Hot Sauce
Prep Steps for Egg Wash
Whisk hot sauce and eggs until incorporated well.
Sauce
16 oz. Frank’s Red Hot Sauce
4 oz. melted butter
1 tsp. coarse black pepper
Prep Steps for Sauce
Using an immersion blender, blend all ingredients until fully blended. Heat sauce on low and simmer on low heat while you prepare and cook your chicken.
Frying Steps
In a cast iron skillet or deep fryer, heat canola oil to 325 degrees. Use enough oil to cover chicken while frying. Meanwhile, take chicken and place in the egg wash until thoroughly covered. Place chicken in the flour mixture, making sure you are pressing the flour into the chicken. This ensures the breading doesn’t fall off during and after it’s been fried. If you want an even crispier and heavier breading, dip back into the egg, then the flour one more time, and a third time if you want it even more so! Feel free to fry two to three pieces at a time, or as many as your skillet/fryer will allow.
Place chicken in oil slowly to prevent splashing. Always lay chicken in oil, slowly and away from your body, thickest part of the chicken first.
Fry for six minutes. After six minutes, remove one chicken fillet and check the internal temperature in the thickest part of the chicken in multiple spots. The internal temperature you are looking for is 165 degrees. If it’s not, place back into the oil for one minute per 10 degrees needed, and then re-check.
After temp is hit, place on a plate that has a couple paper towels on top and place chicken on top. This will help absorb any unwanted oil.
Meanwhile, take your bun of choice (we prefer either brioche or challah buns), butter a griddle or sauté pan and toast the insides of your buns until golden brown. This will help keep your bun’s structure while eating your sandwich so it doesn’t get soggy from the sauce.
FINALLY, Building your Masterpiece!
Placing buns insides facing up, place two pickles on the bottom. Slabs if you can find them but kosher coin cut pickles will work. Dip the whole fillet into the heated sauce, making sure you cover the entire fillet. Using tongs, remove from the sauce and place on top of the pickles. Add your preferred cheese on top. We recommend using sliced pepper jack or even sliced marbled blue cheese if available. Add your top bun and enjoy.
