Ingredients (16)
- 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces (about 4 pounds)
For marinating:
- 1 cup nonfat buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
For dredging:
- 3 cups panko
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for the rack
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 tablespoons Creole seasoning
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
For serving:
- Sliced white bread
- Bread and butter pickles
Buffalo has its hot wings, but Nashville has its hot chicken, crispy, crunchy pieces slathered with an ultra-spicy paste throbbing with cayenne. We’ve skewed the Southern classic a little healthier here, baking instead of deep-frying the bird. Fear not, though: The crunchy is an honorable, appropriately searing version of the Nashville native. You start by marinating skin-on, bone-in chicken pieces in a mix of buttermilk, Dijon, garlic, and cayenne, for at least 2 hours (overnight is okay). Then, you make a thick dredge with panko and olive oil spiced up with more cayenne, chili powder, Creole seasoning, brown sugar, onion and garlic powders, and black pepper. Coat, bake, and serve, with slices of white bread and pickles. The truly hardcore will want a bottle of hot sauce for dousing.
For more, check out our Baked Chicken Breasts, Baked Cracker-Crusted Chicken Fingers, and Oven-Fried Buttermilk Chicken.
Instructions
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1Arrange the chicken pieces in a baking dish in a single layer. Make the marinade: In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, Dijon, garlic, and cayenne. Pour the marinade over the chicken, making sure every piece is covered. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and as long as overnight.
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- 2Meanwhile, make the dredge: In a medium bowl, stir the panko with the olive oil until evenly mixed.
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3Mix all the spices together in a separate bowl until well combined. Add to the panko mixture and combine until everything is evenly distributed.
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- 4Heat the oven to 400°F. Grease a wire rack generously with olive oil and set it over a baking sheet.
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5One by one, remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and dredge in the panko mixture. Place the breaded pieces onto the wire rack in a single layer. Make sure the pieces don’t touch.
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6Bake until the chicken pieces are cooked through, about 40 minutes.
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Serve with the white bread and pickles.![]()
Serve with the white bread and pickles.
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