Spice It Up: Roasted Nashville Hot Chicken
Blogger Amber Wilson's blog-to-book, For The Love of the South is packed with recipes we Yankees are simply itching to recreate. Revitalize your passion for Southern food with this excellent collection of dishes, drinks, desserts and more. This roasted Nashville hot chicken comes out of the oven with a punch!
When I moved to Nashville, I was immediately introduced to the local favorite dish, hot chicken. Hot chicken is fried in a cast iron skillet and tossed in a reddish cayenne paste, then served with pickles and white bread, which gets soaked through with shockingly spicy orange chicken drippings.
Although traditionally Nashville hot chicken is fried then tossed in a hot chicken paste, I prefer the method of quickly pan-frying the thighs on the stovetop, then roasting them in the oven. The result is crispy skin and juicy dark meat. While the chicken finishes off in the oven, I have time to clean up the kitchen and get ready for company.
- 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked sweet paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Use paper towels to gently blot the chicken thighs, removing the moisture from the surface of the chicken. This will ensure you get a nice crisp skin. Lightly season both sides with salt.
- In a large cast iron or ovenproof skillet, heat the sunflower oil over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, gently place the chicken thighs in the pan, skin side down, and panfry until the skin is golden and crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. (You know it’s time to fl ip the thighs when the skin completely releases from the bottom of the skillet.) Flip the thighs, immediately transfer the skillet to the oven, and roast until the thighs are golden brown and the internal temperature is 165°F, 25 to 30 minutes.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, cayenne, brown sugar, smoked paprika, chili powder, and 2 teaspoons salt.
- While the chicken is still piping hot, brush the chicken with the paste. Serve straight from the skillet.