Chicken and waffles is a southern staple and have seen it on restaurant menus and I’ve always thought that it sounded so good and decided to try by myself. To start with the chicken, I made the coating that is going on the outside and I mixed up a little milk and buttermilk. For the dry ingredients, place your flour in a big bowl, add seasoned salt, paprika, freshly ground pepper, ground dried thyme and a quarter teaspoon of cayenne paper. Stir them all together then drizzle in the milk and buttermilk while you mix that with a fork. That will leave little lumps that are going to stick in the chicken and make it nice and crispy. Soak your chicken thighs in buttermilk overnight then put it in the breading and sprinkle it over and just press it.

All you want is the breeding to really stick to the surface of the chicken so the chicken is going to skin side down right into the pan. Let it sizzle in the hot oil and continue to coat the second bath of your chicken then ket that fries u for about five minutes. Give your chicken a turn to they are evenly really nice and golden brown. Tak them of the oil in a spatula with the excess oil dripping off, at this stage they are not quite a finished browning and cooking in the middle. Put them in a pan then into a 350 degrees oven for about 10 to 15 minutes to finish them off. Whip out the dry ingredients starting with a cup of flour, this is my basic go-to waffles recipe, they always turn out right. add a teaspoon and a half of baking powder and two big tablespoons of sugar than a pinch of salt then sift that together.

Take an egg cracked in the pitcher and add a three-quarter cup of whole milk and a nice splash of vanilla then whisk that all together, you don’t have to overmix this batter. Be really gentle then add that to the dry ingredients and mix well together then add melted butter. Melted butter in pancakes and waffles always add extra flavor, a little extra golden color, and extra deliciousness. Add beaten egg whites to give the waffles an amazing texture and mix that with the batter until well combined. Pour the waffles in the waffle maker then close it and the waffles are going to take about five minutes to cook. Chicken and waffles have to have some kind of syrup that’s what makes it so delicious.

Ingredients;

Fried Chicken:

  • 8 boneless, skin-on chicken thighs
  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed
  • 1 tablespoon seasoned salt
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon ground dried thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, plus more if needed
  • 1/4 cup milk, plus more if needed
  • Vegetable oil, for frying

Waffles;

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 4 large egg whites plus 2 large egg yolks
  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) salted butter, melted

Sauce:

  • 1 cup pancake syrup
  • 1/4 cup bourbon
  • 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) salted butter
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions;

  1. For the fried chicken: Thoroughly rinse the chicken, then cover all the pieces with 1 3/4 cups of buttermilk.
  2. Soak in the fridge overnight or up to 24 hours.
  3. When you’re ready to fry the chicken, remove the bowl from the fridge and let it sit on the counter for 30 minutes to take off the chill.
  4. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 360 degrees F and mix the breading.
  5. Put the flour, seasoned salt, paprika, pepper, thyme, and cayenne in a very large bowl and stir together well.
  6. In a small bowl, combine the milk and remaining 1/4 cup buttermilk.
  7. Pour into the flour mixture and, with a fork, gradually mix until there are little lumps throughout.
  8. This will adhere to the chicken and make for a crispier breading. If necessary, add a little more flour or milk to the bowl in order to make it slightly lumpy.
  9. Heat 1 1/2 to 2 inches of vegetable oil in a deep skillet over medium-high heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 365 degrees F.
  10. Lower the heat slightly, if necessary, to keep the oil from getting hotter.
  11. Working in batches, thoroughly coat each chicken piece with the breading, pressing extra breading onto the chicken if necessary.
  12. Place the breaded pieces on a plate.
  13. Add the chicken to the oil 3 or 4 pieces at a time. Make sure they aren’t sticking together, then cover the skillet and fry for 5 to 7 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure the chicken isn’t getting too brown.
  14. Turn the pieces over, cover again and cook 3 to 5 minutes more.
  15. All the while, monitor the temperature of the oil to make sure the chicken doesn’t burn.
  16. Transfer the fried chicken pieces to a baking sheet and continue frying the rest of the chicken.
  17. Bake the thighs for 15 minutes to finish the cooking process.
  18. Sometimes I’ll cut into the thicker part of one of the larger pieces, just to make sure the chicken is cooked through.

For the waffles:

  1. Preheat the waffle iron to the regular setting. Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a bowl.
  2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, vanilla, and 2 egg yolks.
  3. Pour over the dry ingredients and very gently stir until halfway combined.
  4. Pour in the melted butter and chopped jalapenos and continue mixing very gently until combined.
  5. In a separate bowl, beat the 4 egg whites with a whisk until stiff.
  6. Slowly fold them into the batter, stopping short of mixing them all the way through.
  7. Scoop the batter into your waffle iron in batches and cook according to the manufacturer’s directions.

For the sauce:

  1. Pour the pancake syrup and bourbon in a small pot and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes.
  2. Turn off the heat and whisk in the butter 1 tablespoon at a time, then the cayenne.
  3. To serve: Place 2 chicken thighs on top of a waffle.
  4. Pour the warm sauce over everything and serve immediately.