Do you love Nashville Chicken but want trade that white bread for something with more pizzazz? Try our Nashville Hot Chicken Pizza recipe!

Nashville Hot Chicken Pizza brings the heat of that state’s own fiery fried chicken, which is traditionally served on a slice of white bread (often Texas Toast) with pickle chips.

But we all know we can do better than a slice of white bread!

So today’s recipe is going to explore how to up the game with Nashville’s finest flavors on pizza. And if you disagree with me, you’re welcome to pair this with two fingers of your favorite Tennessee bourbon and we’ll call it even.

What Is Nashville Hot Chicken Pizza?

Well first of all, we need to start with “what is Nashville Hot Chicken”? And don’t assume it’s Buffalo chicken! Nor is it Louisiana (or Cajun) fried chicken – the difference principally being the sugar in the Nashville version.

Nashville Hot Chicken (or just Hot Chicken) is, according to Wikipedia, a version of friend chicken that has developed as a specialty of the Nashville, Tennessee. It is believed to have been a dish served amongst the African-American communities of the area for generations – arguably since the 1930’s but, it is likely that the current version of the spices dates back to the 1970’s. In any case, many agree that Prince’s Hot Chicken restaurant is how the masses discovered this delicious chicken. So our thanks to Ms. Andre Prince Jeffries for her tireless work since 1980!

And now, Nashville Hot Chicken can be found in a number of places in the US like Buffalo Wild Wings or (on occasion) Kentucky Fried Chicken (Hey! That’s crossing a State line folks!). But it’s not altogether common, so we’re going to have to show you how to make it.

But What Is Hot Chicken?

Plain and simple, Hot Chicken is a spicy alternative to buttermilk fried chicken. The addition of brown sugar provides a little extra sweetness to balance the spice.

Variations on Nashville Hot Chicken

The main variation of Nashville Hot Chicken is whether or not to apply the spice to the chicken before or after the breading. But another variation is to substitute the chicken for fish (typically whiting or catfish).

Variation: Fried Chicken Pizza – For Those Who Don’t Like It Hot

You don’t like it spicy? Maybe 11 herbs and spices is as spicy as you want to get? There’s no reason you can’t do without the heat and enjoy this pizza sans spice. It’s as simple as not applying the spice. It also opens the door to a visit to Colonel Sanders for your primary topping.

How to Make Nashville Hot Chicken Pizza

First, we have to make Nashville Hot Chicken! Try not to eat it all before you put it on the pizza!

Easy Mode

If you’re not in Nashville but have a Buffalo Wild Wings in your area, you can short cut this recipe by ordering boneless chicken wings with Nashville Hot Sauce. It may not be as fulfilling as making it yourself, but it’s certainly a much faster way to get across the finish line with this pizza. Ask for an extra side of sauce, grab a dill pickle, and skip to the dough.

Making it Yourself

But assuming you’re going to make this yourself, there are a two key decisions to make:

• The cut of chicken
• Seasoning the chicken before or after the breading

And…do you have an Air Fryer?

This appliance has become a staple in many kitchens of late and if you have one, this is going to make for a healthier and easier than the traditional method of cooking fried chicken in oil. Getting the chicken breaded is the same either way – the difference is how you’re cooking the chicken.

What Kind of Chicken?

Because this is going on pizza, I strongly recommend starting with a boneless cut of chicken. White meat or dark is up to you, but once breaded and cooked, you’ll want to be able to cube the chicken – and that’s going to be a lot easier without bones to deal with.

Chicken tenders will have a higher breading to meat ratio, so if you prefer more breading…!

Ingredients You’ll Need

The Chicken

• 5 ounces of breaded boneless chicken (ideal is pre-made for cooking in an Air Fryer)

Nashville Hot Pizza Sauce Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons of melted butter
• 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons of Cayenne Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Paprika
• 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 2 tablespoons of dill pickle brine (have an extra teaspoon at hand in case you find the sauce too thick to spread)

(You should warm the sauce up right before you put it on the dough – the butter is likely to start to solidify and make it difficult to work with. 15 seconds in the microwave should do.)

Hot Sauce Drizzle

This will be drizzled and shaken onto the cooked chicken before putting on the pizza. Note that the reason we’re using “hot sauce” is because it is generally made with vinegar and is runnier than our Nashville hot sauce. We need it to be runnier so that it can mix with the chicken better.

• 2 tablespoons of hot sauce of your choice (such as Frank’s)
• 1 teaspoon of the pizza sauce you’ve made above

Pizza and Toppings

• 1 pizza dough ball (~10 ounces)
• 1.5 ounces dill pickle, sliced thinly
• 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese (or cheese of your choice)

Air-Fry (or Bake) the Chicken

If you’ve purchased ready-made battered chicken tenders, it’s best to follow the directions – just cooking the chicken slightly less than recommended (since it will cook more in the pizza). The chicken I used is specifically for an air fryer and took 15 minutes at 300°F and so I cooked it for 13 minutes.

After the chicken is cooled enough to touch, cut it into small cubes.

Because you want the chicken to taste hot, after it’s cooked, you’ll want to shake it in sauce. Our Nashville Hot sauce is a little thick for this. Therefore, take one teaspoon of the Nashville Hot sauce and mix with 2 tablespoons of your favorite hot sauce. Drizzle on the chicken cubes and shake in a covered bowl.

If you’re feeling ambitious and want to make the fried chicken from scratch, you can use our friend’s excellent recipe here.

If you’re feeling REALLY ambitious, put a comment below and we’ll snap to and put a recipe for making the Nashville chicken completely from scratch! Promise!

Prepare the Dough

Whether using homemade or store-bought dough, ensure it is at room temperature. Follow the instructions on the label if using store-bought, but generally, it should be out of the fridge for about 30 minutes.

Stretching the Dough

Begin hand stretching the dough out being careful not to tear the dough. You’ll probably find using a rolling pin will help make the dough flat and uniform with less chance of a tear, but many would debate me on this!

The Rolling Pin Debate

Some people prefer to hand-stretch out your dough and although that takes some more technique, you shouldn’t shy away from it. Hand-stretching the dough helps preserve the gasses introduced by the yeast fermentation. That makes for an open structure in the crust, which many people like. 

But if you’re not very good at it yet, a rolling pin is going to help you make the dough consistent in thickness.

Topping the Pizza

Transfer your pizza dough to your pizza peel or pizza pan.

Warm up your Nashville Hot Chicken Pizza sauce made above and spread it over the pizza. This sauce is quite thick so you’ll need a brush to spread it over the dough.

Top the pizza with your pieces of fried chicken. Then distribute the pickles.

Lastly, top with your shredded cheese.

Cooking Your Hot Chicken Pizza

We cooked our Nashville Hot Chicken pizza in an outdoor pizza oven such as the ones made by Solo Stove or Ooni. However, for some, the heavy weight of the chicken is often better handled with a pizza cooked on a pizza pan in the oven where you don’t need to move it around.

Cooking Time: Outdoor Pizza Oven

• Cook at >800°F
• 2-4 minutes
• Rotate a quarter turn 4 times.
• Rest for 5 minutes before cutting and eat immediately.

Cooking Time: Pizza Stone Indoor Oven

• Cook at 450°F on a pizza pan or cookie sheet
• 6 minutes, then rotate
• 6 minutes, then use a spatula to transfer the pizza to the pizza stone
• The top of the pizza should already be browning, in which case turn the oven off.
• Leave in oven for 5 extra minutes
• Remove and rest for 5 minutes before cutting and eat immediately.

Rotate the Pizza!

Even in a conventional oven there is still generally variation, so it’s good to rotate your pizza at least once while cooking.

Check the Bottom

Prior to pulling the pizza out, use a spatula to lift the pizza and check how firm it is and how well done the bottom is. Make sure it has some stiffness and some browning.

Time to Eat

Remove the pizza and let it stand for two to three minutes before cutting.

Substitutions and Variations

You can quite easily make this recipe with a number of different pizza doughs. This Nashville Hot Chicken Pizza used our Neapolitan Pizza Dough (Italians might not be pleased with this!). You might really enjoy trying our beer pizza crust!

Additional Tips for Making Hot Chicken Pizza

• Because the sauce in this pizza is made with butter, it will firm up sitting on the counter. You should warm it up in the microwave before putting it on the dough.
• If you think the sauce is going to be too thick to spread out, add an extra splash of warmed pickle juice to the sauce.
• Air fried chicken can take some of the moisture out of it. Therefore, you’ll want to cook it slightly less than recommended on the package (about 2 minutes less) and shake it in the drizzle sauce before adding it to the pizza.
• I generally like using a silicone mat to press my pizza dough out if it is going on a peel. It’s hard for things to stick to it, yet easy to clean. I like this one because it outlines the circumference of the pizza.

How to Store It

Let the pizza cool before placing it in a container but put it in the fridge within two hours. There are specific pizza storage containers, but you can use any container that will fit the pizza. I like to “double wrap” to maintain freshness. I wrap it in tin foil or place it in a plastic bag. Then I put that inside my container. Store in the fridge and eat it within 4 days. You can also place it in the freezer for up to 60 days.

How to Reheat It

If the pizza is from the fridge: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Once it reaches temp, place it on a pan or the pizza stone for 15 minutes. Alternatively, you can heat the slices in a skillet on the stovetop – no need to preheat the pan! Place the skillet on the stovetop over medium heat, place the pizza in, and let heat for 6-8 minutes.

September 29, 2024