Description
Barefoot Contessa fried chicken sandwiches bring Southern comfort to home kitchens with crispy, golden perfection. Hearty layers of juicy chicken, tangy pickles, and creamy sauce create an irresistible sandwich you won’t stop craving.
Ingredients
Scale
- 3 chicken breasts, skinless, boneless (170 g / 6 oz each)
- 16 fl oz / 480 ml buttermilk, shaken
- 3½ cups / 450 g all-purpose flour
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 2½ tsp smoked Spanish paprika
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp celery salt
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1½ tsp black pepper
- 2 × 1½ quarts / 2 × 1.36 L canola oil
- 1 shallot, peeled, halved lengthwise, and thinly sliced crosswise
- 2 garlic cloves, smashed
- 1 jalapeño pepper (with seeds), halved lengthwise
- 6 potato hamburger buns, toasted
- Buttermilk Herb Mayo
- 6 Bibb lettuce leaves
- Kosher dill pickles (such as Claussen), thinly sliced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Marinade Preparation: Whisk buttermilk, shallot, garlic, jalapeño, kosher salt, and black pepper in a spacious mixing bowl to create a vibrant flavor foundation.
- Chicken Preparation: Tenderize chicken breasts between parchment paper until uniformly thin, then slice horizontally. Submerge chicken pieces completely in marinade, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 8-24 hours to allow deep flavor penetration.
- Coating and Oven Setup: Preheat oven to 300°F, positioning a wire rack on a baking sheet to maintain chicken temperature. Blend flour, baking powder, paprika, cayenne, celery salt, kosher salt, and black pepper to create a dynamic seasoned coating.
- Frying Process: Heat canola oil to 350°F in a deep Dutch oven. Extract chicken from marinade, meticulously coat in seasoned flour, dip again in marinade, then re-coat with flour. Fry chicken in batches for 5 minutes, rotating to achieve uniform golden-brown exterior, transferring cooked pieces to oven-warmed rack.
- Sandwich Assembly: Generously spread Buttermilk Herb Mayo on bottom bun, layer with crisp lettuce, pickle slices, and freshly fried chicken. Enhance top bun with additional mayo before crowning the sandwich.
- Serving: Present sandwiches immediately, capitalizing on the chicken’s peak temperature and crispiness for an optimal culinary experience.
Notes
- Marinate Strategically: Allow chicken to soak in buttermilk mixture for minimum 8 hours, preferably overnight, to ensure deep flavor penetration and tender meat texture.
- Temperature Precision: Maintain consistent 350°F oil temperature during frying to guarantee crispy exterior without burning or undercooking chicken.
- Double-Dredging Technique: Repeat flour coating process creates extra-crunchy, multilayered breading that locks in moisture and delivers superior crispiness.
- Resting Station Matters: Using oven-warmed wire rack prevents chicken from becoming soggy, preserving perfect crunch while keeping meat warm and succulent.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner, Snacks
- Method: Frying
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
- Calories: 550
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 900 mg
- Fat: 32 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 25 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 46 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 25 g
- Cholesterol: 75 mg