Baked Nashville Hot Chicken
Servings 8 chicken thighs
Equipment
- Large baking sheet with wire rack
- Basting brush
- Shallow baking dish
Ingredients
- 5-5.5 lbs bone-in chicken thighs
Marinade ingredients
- 3 cups buttermilk see notes for substitutions
- 1 cup dill pickle juice plus drained pickles for serving (from a 16-ounce jar dill pickle chips)
- ¼ cup hot sauce Louisiana style
Dredge ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup creole seasoning
- 1 Tbsp. black pepper cracked coarse if possible
Sauce ingredients
- ½ cup butter cubed
- 3 Tbsp. brown sugar
- 4 Tbsp. cayenne pepper
- 1 Tbsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
Prepare the marinade
- Combine all marinade ingredients in a zip-lock bag, a shallow pan, or a large bowl. Face your chicken skin side up in the brine, cover, and refrigerate in an airtight container for at least 2 hours or overnight.
- When ready to bake, preheat your oven to 400°F. Prepare the dredge by whisking all the dry ingredients together in a shallow pan.
- Remove chicken from the marinade and place onto a paper towel lined cookie sheet. It's very important to allow the excess liquid to drain off and pat each piece dry. The meat is fully moistened at this point so it is important to get rid of the excess.
- Assemble your dredging station, keeping in mind this is a double dredge, so you will repeat the process. Dip the marinated/dried chicken into the flour dredge, shake off excess flour, dip back into the marinade, shake off excess, and finally dip back into the dredge, shaking off the excess. Phew!
- Allow 15 minutes for the dredged chicken to set. The moisture in the marinade needs to fully work its way into the dredge for the best results.
- Lightly brush vegetable oil or use a spray over the surface of the dredged chicken and place them into the oven. This ensures a crispy golden brown skin.
- Bake chicken for approximately 50 minutes, until each piece reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. Pull from the oven and allow chicken to rest while you make the sauce.
Prepare the sauce
- In a measuring glass or microwave safe dish, add the seasonings, then top with the cubed butter.
- Heat the butter in the microwave for 30 second intervals with the power level on low, stirring at each interval until you see the butter and spices have melted together to form a paste.
- Finally, use a pastry brush to brush the sauce over the cooked chicken and serve on a slice of white bread with a handful of sliced dill pickles. Enjoy!
