Ask anyone who lives in Music City about hot chicken and they will inform you that the food is a staple in many Nashvillians’ diets. With a kick of cayenne and a whole lot of fried chicken goodness, the Southern specialty has become a beloved part of the food culture in town that customers just want to eat up all year round!
Rather than having to travel hundreds of miles to test a taste of the spicy dish, Sounds Like Nashville wants to bring the hot chicken right to your household with a recipe from one of the hot spots in town that made the meal famous. Hattie B’s Hot Chicken boasts itself on piecing together a basket of fiery cluckers that make one’s mouth water (for heat level and taste)!
Although the recipe may require a dash of patience and a sprinkle of love, the hot chicken you’ll be chowing down when the dinner bell rings will make the wait absolutely worth it. Here is the knock-off recipe for Hattie B’s hot chicken, in celebration of Nashville’s Hot Chicken Week:
Hattie B’s Hot Chicken
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 8 hours
Ingredients:
- 1 whole chicken, preferably weighing 3 lbs. and cut
- Salt
- Pepper
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tbsp. Louisiana-style hot sauce
- 2 cups flour
- Sea salt
- Vegetable oil (to fry)
- ½ cup lard, melted
- 2 tbsp. cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp. packed light brown sugar
- ½ tsp. paprika
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- Pickles
Directions:
- To dry-brine the chicken overnight, toss in salt and pepper before covering and refrigerating the coated chicken.
- In a large bowl, combine the whole milk, eggs and hot sauce. In another bowl, mix the flour and sea salt together.
- Dip the chicken into the flour mixture, followed by the milk mixture and then in the flour mixture once more. Allow any extra excess flour to fall off the chicken.
- Let the vegetable oil heat up in a deep fryer to 325˚F. Put a wire rack on top of a rimmed baking sheet and put to the side for later.
- Dunk the chicken into the fryer in pieces, giving about 15-17 minutes for the breast and 18-20 minutes for the legs. Remove the chicken once fried to a crisp onto the wire rack to cool.
- Get another bowl to place the melted lard into for the coating. Mix the cayenne, brown sugar, ¾ tsp. sea salt, 1 tsp. pepper, paprika and garlic powder together. Cover the fried chicken with the mixed coating and get ready to make your guests happy.
- Serve with the pickles as garnish, and stuff your face immediately!