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Fried Chicken and Cornbread Waffles


Who is the genius that thought to combine fried chicken and waffles? Drizzled with syrup and a pat of butter, that flavor combination is a Friday Night dinner time treat. 

For this recipe, I wanted to put a spin on this new classic, and so opted to make cornbread waffles. All that involved was mixing up my favorite cornbread recipe, and cooking it in one of my waffle irons (and yes, I have a collection of waffle irons. It’s one of my many weaknesses). 

This fried chicken recipe is incredible; cool it down completely and pop it in the fridge. Leftovers the next day straight out of the refrigerator are just as crispy as if you pulled the chicken out of the fryer. If the spice blend isn’t to your taste, experiment and see what you like best; add more spice or less, it’s really up to your tastebuds. Enjoy!

Cornbread Waffles

1 cup of flour
1/2 cup of cornmeal
1/2 cup of polenta or stone ground corn meal
1/2 cup of sugar
3 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of buttermilk
1/2 cup of whole milk
1/2 cup of butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs



Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, polenta, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Set it aside.

In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, milk, eggs and melted butter. 

Pour your wet ingredients in to your dry ingredients and mix together until just combined.

Cook in your waffle iron according to your machine’s manufacturer’s instructions.

If you do not eat all of the waffles you make, freeze them and toast to reheat. They are just as good as freshly made!


Fried Chicken

Ingredients

Wet Brine

2 tablespoons smoked paprika
2 tablespoons fresh ground pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 to 1 teaspoon chipotles in adobo
2 teaspoons onion powder
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1 cup of buttermilk
1 large egg
2 teaspoons salt

Chicken
3 1/2 pounds of bone in, skin on thighs and drumsticks

Dry mix
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne

To Cook
3-4 cups of peanut oil


Combine all the ingredients listed under wet brine in a bowl. Mix thoroughly. Add the chicken pieces and allow to marinate for 4 hours or up to overnight, turning the pieces occasionally.

Whisk all the ingredients for the dry mix together. Drizzle in about 3 to 4 tablespoons of the buttermilk marinade into the flour mixture and work it into the flour with your fingers. Take one piece of chicken from the bag, allowing excess buttermilk to drip off, put the chicken into the flour mixture, and toss it around to coat. Continue adding chicken pieces to the flour mixture one at a time until they are all in the bowl. Toss the chicken until every piece is thoroughly coated. Press the flour mixture onto the chicken to ensure a nice, thick coating. 

Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 350 degrees and prepare a baking pan with an ovenproof rack. Heat your oil in a 12 inch cast iron chicken fryer over medium-high heat until a thermometer reads 400 degrees F. You want the oil really hot because the temperature will drop significantly once you add your chicken pieces. You do not want your thermometer to drop below 300 degrees F with the chicken added.

Working in batches, fry the chicken pieces, starting skin side down. Fry the chicken until it’s a deep golden brown on the first side. This will take about 6 minutes. Don’t check the chicken for doneness until it has fried for a few minutes or you risk knocking off some of the yummy coating. Flip the chicken pieces with tongs and cook until the second side is golden brown, about another 3 to 4 minutes. 

Transfer your fried chicken onto your prepared baking tray with wire rack and place it in the oven. Cook your chicken until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F.  It will take about 5 to 10 minutes. Remove your cooked chicken onto paper towel plates and allow to rest for a further 10 to 15 minutes. You can serve your fried chicken with your cornbread waffles now while they are hot, or tomorrow after they have been chilled; enjoy with some real maple syrup and butter (or table syrup, I won’t judge!)

Cool any leftover chicken down to room temperature, then refrigerate in a container with a tight fitting lid. Enjoy it the next day cold; it will be super crispy! 




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