Nashville Hot Chicken Drumsticks

This post may contain affiliate links, and I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read our privacy policy.

Nashville Hot Chicken Drumsticks are fried chicken drumsticks slathered in a spicy cayenne sauce or paste.

March 30th is National Hot Chicken Day! You must celebrate by visiting one of your favorite hot chicken restaurants (if you’re lucky enough to have one where you live). You can also make these Nashville Hot Chicken Drumsticks at home!

Share the hot chicken love on social media today using the hashtags #nationalhotchickenday, #hotchickenday, #nashvillehotchicken and #recipesforholidays.

Be sure to follow my March Food Holidays page, so you never miss a food holiday in the month of March!

“I think no matter what the occasion may be, you can never go wrong by showing up at the dinner table with a hot plate of fried chicken.”

-Paula Deen

The History of Nashville Hot Chicken:

From Wikipedia: It is generally accepted that the originator of hot chicken is the family of Andre Prince Jeffries, owner of Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack. She has operated the restaurant since 1980; before that time, it was owned by her great-uncle, Thornton Prince III. Although impossible to verify, Jeffries says the development of hot chicken was an accident. Her great-uncle Thornton was purportedly a womanizer, and after a particularly late Saturday night out, his girlfriend at the time cooked him a fried chicken breakfast with extra pepper as revenge. Instead, Thornton decided he liked it so much that, by the mid-1930s, he and his brothers had created their own recipe and opened the BBQ Chicken Shack café.

Hot chicken has been around for generations in Nashville’s African American community. It may have been introduced in the 1930’s, but the spice paste that we know today emerged in the 1970’s.

Today, Nashville has at least two dozen hot chicken-themed restaurants (lots of different brands competing against each other). Hot chicken restaurants have popped up in other parts of the country too. And you’ll occasionally see hot chicken featured on the menu at a Southern-style restaurant.

Ingredients needed:

• buttermilk
• cayenne pepper sauce (like Frank’s Red Hot)
• white sugar
• kosher salt and black pepper
• chicken drumsticks
• egg
• all purpose flour
• vegetable oil
• cayenne pepper
• paprika
• chili powder
• garlic powder
• brown sugar
• sliced pickles, for serving (optional)

How to make Nashville Hot Chicken Drumsticks:

The complete, printable recipe is at the end of this post.

BRINE THE CHICKEN:
In a large zip baggie, combine buttermilk, cayenne sauce, sugar, salt and pepper (1st 5 ingreds). Add the chicken. Seal the bag, and turn it to coat the chicken. Chill for 2 to 4 hours. Remove the chicken and reserve 1 cup of the brine. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels.

ADD THE COATING:
In a shallow bowl, whisk together the reserved brine and the egg. In another shallow bowl, combine the flour, salt and pepper. Dip the chicken into the flour mixture, then into the brine mixture, and again in the flour mixture to coat. Place on a parchment-lined tray. Let stand for 10 minutes.

FRY THE CHICKEN:
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Line a 15×10-inch baking pan with foil. Place a wire rack in the pan. In a deep, heavy pot, heat 1 1/2 inches of oil to 350 degrees F. Using tongs, carefully add two or three pieces of chicken at a time to the hot oil. The oil temperature will drop, so adjust the heat to maintain a 350 degree temperature. Fry about 10 minutes or until chicken is golden brown, turning once. Drain on paper towels. Transfer to the wire rack in the pan. Keep warm in the oven while frying the remaining chicken.

MAKE THE SAUCE:
In a small saucepan, whisk together the 1/2 cup oil, cayenne, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, brown sugar, salt and pepper. Heat until warm. Keep warm.

Brush the sauce on the chicken (or drizzle it on top for serving).

You’re going to want to eat these Nashville Hot Chicken Drumsticks with a lot of paper towels, and you’ll want to lick all the sauce off your fingers. They’re delicious!

Fun Facts About Hot Chicken:

• The spicy hot chicken paste/sauce has two key ingredients: lard and cayenne pepper.
• Hot chicken is traditionally served on white bread (to soak up the sauce) with pickle chips.
• Hot chicken is definitely a tourist attraction in Nashville.
• Nashville hosts The Music City Hot Chicken Festival every 4th of July weekend.
• Hot chicken can be deep fried or pan fried.
• There is a “hot fish” variation of hot chicken.
• Check out The Hot Chicken Cookbook by Timothy Charles Davis.