Shake Shack style fried boneless chicken thighs with two simple sauces to make it better than ever!
This recipe is all over the internet – it first came to my attention via Ina, of course, in Cook Like a Pro, where she credits the Shake Shack for their amazing Fried Chicken recipe. I tweaked this one a bit by increasing some spice, and chose chicken thighs over breast meat. Some inspiration also came from Shubie’s in Marblehead, MA, where they always have delicious fried chicken thighs in the prepared food case. Thanks Shubie’s!
The original recipe calls for splitting small chicken breasts in half, so the size of chicken thighs is perfect – no cutting required. Per usual, I made a huge batch of this, because fried chicken is the best leftover food in the fridge. My family prefers this made into sandwiches with a brioche bun, but I like it as is – with the hot honey drizzle and sriracha mayo to dip.
The chicken needs to marinate in a buttermilk dressing for several hours, which later becomes part of the batter. I added onion powder to the spice blend with the flour, and upped the level of spice all around.
Southern Fried Chicken Thighs with Hot Honey and Siracha Mayo
Ingredients
Chicken for Marinating
- 3 lbs boneless, skinless, chicken thighs
- 4 cups buttermilk
- 1 jalepeno, split in half lengthwise
- 1 large shallot, thinly sliced
- 4 cloves of garlic, smashed
- 1 Tbsp kosher salt
- 1 Tbsp ground black pepper
Breading Mixture
- 5 cups AP flour
- 6 Tbsp baking powder
- 1.5 Tbsp Kosher Salt
- 1.5 Tbsp Smoked Paprika
- 1 Tbsp ground black pepper
- 2 tsp cayenne powder
- 2 tsp celery salt
- 1 Tbsp onion powder
- 2 quarts canola oil, for frying
Hot Honey
- 1/2 cup honey
- 2 tsp siracha sauce
- 2 tsp tabasco sauce
- 1/2 tsp paprika
Siracha Mayo
- 1/2 cup good quality mayo
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 2 tsp siracha
Instructions
- Trim the chicken thighs of any excess skin or fat, and place in a large dish for marinating (I use a 9 x 12 baking dish).
- Stir together the buttermilk, split jalepeno, sliced shallot, smashed garlic, salt and pepper, and pour over the chicken and place in the fridge for at least 4 hours, but up to overnight.
- When ready to cook, heat the canola oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat to a temperature of 350 degrees, using a cooking themometer that is accurate. Preheat the oven to 225 degrees, and ready a sheet pan with a wire rack set inside.
- In a large shallow dish, combine all of the dry ingredients (flour through onion powder) for the batter, using a wire whisk to stir. Lift the chicken pieces out of the marinade, dredge through the flour mixture, then repeat with another dip into the buttermilk marinade, and the flour again - this double dip is what gives the flaky crust such an incredible texture. Carefully lower no more than three pieces of chicken into the hot oil at a time, cooking for five minutes total, flipping once through. When done, place on the sheet pan and sprinkle with kosher salt.. Keep warm in the oven while you finish the rest of the chicken and make the sauces (below).
- To serve, enjoy the chicken warm, room temerature, or even cold, drizzled with the hot honey and dipped into the siracha mayo. This also clearly makes a fabulous sandwhich!
Hot Honey Sauce
- Stir the honey, siracha, tabasco, and paprika together in a small jar.
Siracha Mayo
- Combine the mayo, honey, siracha, and fresh lemon juice in a small bowl.