Is there anything more iconic than a Buttermilk Fried Chicken Sandwich? When done properly, they can be pretty tough to beat if you ask me. There are thousands upon thousands of versions of chicken sandwiches online, but what separates this recipe is a few simple techniques that take this sandwich over the top.
Dry-brining the chicken the night before thoroughly seasons the entire cut of meat and provides fantastic texture. The batter uses simple seasonings, buttermilk, hot sauce, and lemon juice; the whole thing is topped off with a creamy, tangy Carolina White Coleslaw, Quick Bread and Butter Pickles, and Fluffy Brioche Buns.
Can't get enough fried chicken? Check out my Chicken Schnitzel with Lemon Cream Sauce for more!
Components and Ingredients
There are several components to this dish: the fried chicken (obviously), Carolina White Slaw, bread and butter pickles, and the Fluffy Brioche Buns. All of these come together to create something greater than the sum of its parts.
Buttermilk Fried Chicken
The chicken starts out with flattening it to about half an inch thick, then doing an overnight dry brine. To dry brine, coat the chicken liberally with kosher salt and place it on a wire rack in the fridge overnight. This evenly seasons the entire chicken breast and also gives the chicken a really fantastic texture.
For more information on how to dry brine, and a deep dive on different types of salt and how to choose the correct one, check out my "deep-dive" article that goes into all things salt and dry brining!
The breading is seasoned with paprika, smoked paprika, granulated garlic, white pepper, black pepper, and fine sea salt. The wet ingredients are a combination of buttermilk, whole milk, hot sauce, a beaten egg, lemon juice, and fine sea salt. The addition of the lemon juice and hot sauce adds balance with a nice acidic pop of flavor. One other important part of this is to ensure that there is salt in both the dry and wet ingredients of the batter.
The key to creating a really crispy, craggy texture on the breading is to add several tablespoons of the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients before you do the second dredge. (The complete dredging instructions are below).
After they are breaded, allow them to sit for 15 to 20 minutes before frying. This helps the flour to hydrate completely, which allows the breading to adhere to the chicken. Fry in batches with peanut oil heated at 350°F to 375°F for 8 to 10 minutes until the breading is golden brown, and the internal temperature reads 165°F. Transfer the chicken to a wire rack and immediately season with kosher salt. Allow to cool and drain for about 5 minutes.
Carolina white slaw
Topping off this sandwich is a very simple, creamy, and tangy coleslaw. I used my Carolina White Barbecue Sauce as the base dressing and added a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to increase the acidity. The slaw is a combination of very thinly sliced green and red cabbage. The key to this is to dress and toss the cabbage immediately before adding it to the sandwich. This keeps the cabbage from getting too soggy.
Pickles
I recommend using bread and butter pickles for this sandwich. The sweetness works so well with the coleslaw. I tried dill pickles with this sandwich, but they ended up overpowering both the chicken and the coleslaw. My recipe for quick bread and butter pickles works perfectly for this recipe.
Buns
Any standard burger bun will work perfectly for this recipe. However, if you want to take this sandwich to the next level, I recommend you make a batch of my Fluffy Brioche Buns. These buns were specifically developed for this sandwich. They are soft, fluffy, buttery, and absolutely delicious.
Assembly
Assembling this sandwich is very easy. Place some bread and butter pickles on the bottom of your toasted bun, add your fried chicken, then a generous helping of Carolina White Slaw, and follow it up with your top bun. Feel free to cut the sandwich in half if you want, but either way - get ready for some magic.
This also serves as a very solid foundation to get creative with. This recipe would be perfect to use as a base for a buffalo chicken sandwich with a blue cheese slaw, or you could make a spicy version with hot honey and homemade dill pickles.
Did you make this recipe for Buttermilk Fried Chicken Sandwiches?
Let me know in the comments below how yours turned out, and don't forget to leave a rating!
Recipe
Buttermilk Fried Chicken Sandwichs
Equipment
- Dutch Oven, Large Pot, or Fryer
Ingredients
Chicken
- 4 Chicken Breasts Flattened to ⅜ to ½" Thick, and Halved
- ½ - ¾ Teaspoon Kosher Salt per Pound of Meat (For Dry Brine)
- 24 oz. Peanut Oil For Frying
Buttermilk Breading
- 2 Cups Buttermilk
- 1 Cup Whole Milk
- ½ Cup Hot Sauce (Texas Pete Preferred)
- Juice from 1 Lemon
- 2 Eggs Beaten
- 1 Teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
- 4 Cups All Purpose Flour
- 2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
- 1 Tablespoon Paprika
- ½ Teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- 2 Teaspoons Granulated Garlic
- 1 Teaspoon White Pepper
- 2 Teaspoons Black Pepper
- ½ Teaspoon Cayenne
- 1 Teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
Carolina White Slaw
- 1 Cup Mayo
- 2 Tablespoons Cider Vinegar
- 2 Teaspoons Yellow Mustard
- 2 Teaspoons Dijon Mustard
- ½ Teaspoon Hot Sauce Texas Pete Brand Preferred
- 4 Teaspoons Light Brown Sugar
- ½ Teaspoon Onion Powder
- ½ Teaspoon Garlic Powder
- ½ Teaspoon Paprika
- ½ Teaspoon Black Pepper
- ½ Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Worcestershire
- Juice from 1 Lemon
- 1 Pinch Cayenne
- ½ Head of Green Cabbage Thinly Shredded
- ¼ Head of Purple Cabbage Thinly Shredded
Sandwich Assembly
- 1 Batch Batch Fluffy Brioche Buns (Store-bought Buns) Halved and Toasted
- 1 Batch Homemade Bread and Butter Pickles
Instructions
Overnight Dry Brine (More Info on Dry Brining Here)
- The night before making these sandwiches, pound chicken breasts to ⅜ to ½-inch thick and cut each breast in to two equal sized pieces.
- Dry brine the chicken with ¾ teaspoon of kosher salt per pound of meat. Apply salt evenly over the chicken pieces and place on a wire rack lined baking sheet. Allow to rest, uncovered in the fridge overnight.
Buttermilk Fried Chicken
- The next day, mix buttermilk, whole milk, hot sauce, lemon juice, eggs, and fine sea salt in a large bowl or dish.
- Mix flour, cornstarch, paprika, smoked paprika, granulated garlic, white pepper, black pepper, cayenne, and fine sea salt in a separate large bowl or dish.
- Dredge chicken pieces in the dry ingredients, pressing into the flour and coating all sides and crevices. Shake off excess and place on a wire rack while you repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.
- Add 6 to 8-tablespoons of the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture and combine with your fingertips until little beads form.
- Dredge your chicken pieces in buttermilk mixture, then return chicken to the dry ingredients, pressing to coat. Shake excess flour mixture off and return to wire rack and let rest for 15 to 20-minutes. Repeat with remaining chicken pieces.
- While chicken is resting, fill a large Dutch oven, or heavy bottom pot with 24 oz of peanut oil. Heat oil to 350 - 375°F over medium high heat. (The oil should fill the pot no more than half way.)
- Fry chicken in batches, turning frequently, and adjusting heat level to maintain 350°F until golden brown and chicken reads at least 165°F internally on an instant read thermometer. Approximately 5 to 8-minutes per batch.
- Remove from oil, place on a wire rack. Season immediately with a light sprinkle of kosher salt and allow to drain and cool for 5 to 10-minutes.
Carolina White Slaw
- While chicken is cooling, mix all sauce ingredients in a large bowl. Allow to sit 5 to10-minutes for sugar to dissolve, then stir again.
- Immediately before serving, add shredded cabbages and toss until coated evenly.
Sandwich Assembly
- Place 3 to 4 bread and butter pickles on the bottom of your toasted buns.
- Add one piece of fried chicken.
- Add a generous portion of Carolina White Slaw, and top with other bun half.
- Cut sandwich in half (optionally) and serve.
Sybil says
I've got to have one of these chicken sandwiches!
Jessica Holmes says
This is a gorgeous sandwich!!! Such an amazing recipe and tips for perfect breading.
Spencer Klickman says
I am seriously stoked that you guys made this! So glad you guys liked it!