Bite into this Winning Sandwich on Game Day
Fried chicken wings dressed with plucky Buffalo sauce dipped in cool, pungent blue cheese are a staple Super Bowl treat. But, minus the bone and the skin on the chicken, and extra attention to detail in a tender-ensuring brine and super soft potato roll, you can turn this sometimes messy classic into the best sandwich on the block, heck, in town! When I first met this sandwich while researching the latest edition of The New Charleston Chefs Table a few years ago, biting into this beauty was love at first sight, then bite, and down to every last crumb. Like my first love, I’ll never forget that sandwich. Ever. And along with the chocolate pudding from another Charleston institution, Hominy Grill, I’ll surely ask for it as part of my last meal, if I am lucky to have advance notice.
The innovative and prescient Boxcar Betty’s ownership team hatched their plot to create way-better-than-fast-food fried chicken when they were working the front of the house at Charleston restaurant stalwart, Magnolias. All of the chicken here is natural, cage-free, antibiotic-free and locally sourced. That’s not the only difference, it’s the largely secret brine, and of course hot, fresh regularly changed canola oil and house-made condiments and sauces. They all reach a crescendo in the best-selling Buffalo fried chicken sandwich with pungent, creamy blue cheese sauce, garden fresh tomato slices with, and crunchy, buttery Bibb lettuce. Cool contrasts with the hot, creamy complements the vinegar pluck, and the crunch melts into the soft, white bun to make the perfect sandwich.
Here’s how to make yours at home. Shop today or Saturday, prep for less than two hours (including brine), and game on! The last few minutes of frying the chicken and compiling the sandwiches can literally be done just before the game starts or halftime, in just minutes. Watch ’em swoon and remember to save one for the cook.
Boxcar’s Buffalo, Blue Cheese Sauce, Tomato and Bibb Lettuce Fried Chicken Sandwich
(Makes 4 sandwiches/servings)
For the fried chicken:
1 package commercial poultry brine
(Note: BB’s brine is technically a secret. But, co-owner Roth Scott did share his basic brine ratio of 1 gallon water to 1/3 cup each salt & sugar. Always use glass or stainless steel, not plastic for brining and non-processed salt, ideally kosher. Play with basic seasonings and herbs to come up with your own twist or use commercial poultry brine).
Four 6-ounce skinless chicken breasts
2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
4 cups all-purpose white flour
1/4 cup garlic powder
1/4 cup onion powder
1/4 cup black pepper
1/4 cup kosher or sea salt
2 cups canola oil for frying
4 soft potato rolls (suggest Pane Di Vita potato sandwich rolls, Martin’s potato sandwich rolls, or an alternate preferred fresh potato roll brand)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter for toasting rolls
For the Buffalo sauce:
2 sticks (1/2 pound) unsalted butter
1 cup Texas Pete hot sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons mesquite liquid smoke
Juice of 1 fresh lemon
For the blue cheese dressing:
1 cup coarsely crumbled blue cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 teaspoons finely minced garlic
2 teaspoons sriracha (or substitute another hot sauce)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Method:
Brine chicken in chosen brine for 1 1/2 hours. While the chicken is brining, prepare the Buffalo sauce and the blue cheese sauce. For the Buffalo sauce, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk the remaining sauce ingredients together in a medium bowl. When melted, whisk in the butter to combine. For the blue cheese sauce, gently combine all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl, being careful not to overmix. The goal is to have nice chunks of blue cheese in the dressing.
Drain chicken and set aside. Heat canola oil in a deep fryer or deep skillet to 350F (or over medium high heat if you’re using the stove). In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and the Dijon mustard. Separately, combine the flour, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper in another medium bowl.
Dip the first chicken breast in the buttermilk mixture then place in flour mixture. Coat chicken well with the flour and press firmly. Flip chicken and coat again. Repeat the same process with the remaining chicken breasts.
Gently place the chicken in the deep fryer or skillet, well-spaced, in a single layer. Cook for 4 1/2 minutes and until golden brown. While the chicken is cooking, butter buns and toast on a flat top griddle or medium hot pan. Spread blue cheese dressing on top bun. Place slice of tomato and Bibb lettuce on top bun.
Using tongs, remove the chicken from the hot oil and place on a paper-lined plate. Place thermometer in thickest part of chicken to ensure temperature is 165F. Dunk chicken in Buffalo sauce and let drain well. Place sauced chicken on bottom bun and put sandwich(es) together. Serve hot.
Back to school……
Some friends have suggested adding online classes to my private cooking class curriculum. Please let me know if this interests you and what you are interested in learning. It might be a fun way for us to cook together while Covid hopefully leaves our world forever. Here’s a link to what’s on tap at the moment:
Message me here as always with thoughts and questions. Be safe, be well, and cook your very best with love in your heart and patience at your fingertips!
Fondly,
Holly and Rocky