Fried Chicken Sandwiches

A local food blogger keeps posting all the fried chicken sandwiches he is trying around town.  Well, finally he made me crave it so I thought I'd give it a try.  I based mine on the Serious Eats recipe though I made it my own.

I was at the mercy of the grocery store delivery for the buns I received.  I ordered potato buns but received a sliced potato bread loaf instead.  Also, they had no brioche so my only other option was Calabrese buns.  I could have ordered 4 potato buns from the bakery close to me but they are $8 and I wasn't feeling the splurge today...

• 1/2 to 1 cup of buttermilk, for marinade
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup of pepperoncini pickle brine, for marinade
• Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

I pounded the thighs between two pieces of plastic wrap simply so they would be of even size for frying.  Plus after they looked way bigger and like more bang for the buck.  Below was pre-pounding.

I was careful with my love of mallet bashing and only flattened them, not destroying them like I usually do...  I seasoned with S&P and put them in a Ziploc with the marinade for about 10 hours in the fridge.

I used 1 cup of unbleached all-purpose flour and 1 tablespoon of baking powder for the breading.  I mixed in S&P as well.  I dredged the chicken in the flour and put two thighs in the oil at a time.  

I poured about a half inch of avocado oil into my cast iron skillet and pre-heated this while getting the chicken ready.  I did this over med-high heat, the recipe said 400°F but mine was smoking at 375°F,  so I had to go in.  

I flipped when browned and drained on paper towels when done.  I immediately seasoned with salt. 

 

For my son, I toasted the bun and slathered Sriracha BBQ sauce on.  

I put one thigh, some sliced pepperoncini, one more thigh and Havarti jalapeno cheese.

I had mine on the potato bread with mayo and hot pickled peppers.  

These were delicious!  Definitely a hit.  The chicken was well flavored and nicely seasoned.  It was crispy without having any skin on it!  I will make them again, but next time I'm going to do the same thing exactly but try it in my air-fryer.  I know it will be waaaay less messy, and healthier!!!