How To Make A Fried Chicken Sandwich

This fried chicken sandwich is a staple at any fast-food joint or home kitchen – crispy spiced chicken, pickles, a toasted bun, and creamy mayo. Perfection!

Done in 45 minutes

Serves 4

Dish by Spencer Lengsfield

Ingredients

for the chicken brine

5chicken thighs, boneless

300mlbuttermilk

2 tbsphot sauce

100mlpickle juice

1 tspsalt

for the dredge

2eggs, beaten

3 tbspvodka

200g00 flour

100gplain flour

3 tbspblack pepper

1/2 tbspsalt

1 tspgarlic powder

1 tspcayenne

1/2 tsppaprika

for the mayo

5 tbspmayonnaise

1/2 tspcayenne

1 tspgarlic powder

2 tbsppickle juice

Pinch each of salt and sugar

to serve

Toasted brioche buns

Lettuce, shredded

Pickles

If you're going to make fried chicken at home, you may as well do it properly. This is a simple, classic fried chicken sandwich recipe that everyone should have in their cooking roster. There's tips on everything from brining to dredging your chicken to nailing your mayo. Follow these steps and you'll have a fried chicken sandwich worth showing off.

Method

Start by preparing the brine. Whisk together the buttermilk, pickle juice, hot sauce, and salt. Add the chicken thighs, coat well, cover with cling film and leave in the fridge for at least 3 hours but overnight if possible. Remove from the fridge at least 1 hour before frying.

For the mayo, whisk together all of the ingredients. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary.

Prepare your breading station. In one bowl, whisk together eggs and vodka. In another bowl, combine the flours, spices, salt, and pepper.

Place the chicken on a drying rack to drip-dry and remove all the excess brine. Pat dry with kitchen roll if needed.

Lightly coat the chicken thighs in the flour mixture. Add a few tablespoons of the egg mixture into the remaining flour, then carefully and quickly distribute it through the flour with your fingertips.

Dunk a floured chicken thigh into the remaining egg mixture, allow excess to drip off, then dunk into the craggly flour mixture. Squeeze the breading well into the chicken. Repeat with the remaining chicken.

Fill a cast-iron or deep saucepan with 1-2 inches of oil, and heat to 180 C. Working in batches, lower the breaded chicken into the oil, turning them a few times to ensure even cooking. Once they're golden and crispy, and the thickest part of the chicken reads 73 C, transfer to a rack to drain the excess oil.

Toast the buns in a pan with a little butter. Build your sandwich, starting with a good dollop of the mayo on the bottom, followed by the shredded lettuce. Add a crispy chicken thigh, then some pickle slices, and finally the other half of the bun with more mayo. Enjoy!

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Spencer Lengsfield

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Spencer has been cooking since she got her first Easy-Bake oven at four years old, and began recipe developing professionally whilst completing her Master’s degree in 2020. Born in Los Angeles, she has an inherent love for all things Mexican, Japanese, and Korean, but is also heavily influenced by her family's Louisiana heritage. Spencer loves bright flavours, spice and fusion food. If she were a food, she'd be kimchi - versatile, spicy and funky.