See how I took this traditional Southern dish and made it into a bite-size slider perfect for football!
Hey, y'all! Welcome to the latest installment of Saturday's Snacks! Each Saturday I share with you what my family is munching on as we cheer on the Gators, the Jaguars, and the Cowboys. So far I have shared with you delicious recipes like Loaded Baked Potato Dip, Jalapeno Popper Dip and Loaded Tater Tot Skewers.
Last week my Jaguars whipped the Ravens in London, England. With kickoff being at 9:30 AM, I didn't want to serve my traditional dips or appetizers. For this game, I thought outside the box and racked my brain until I came up with the perfect idea- Chicken and Waffle Sliders!
I wanted to make this idea as quick and easy as possible. My Jags tend to play well in London (in fact that's the only place that they play well) so I didn't want to miss any of the game. Rather than missing an entire quarter in the kitchen making homemade chicken strips and homemade waffles, I decided to go the frozen route on this recipe.
I think this picture sums it up. Yes... that is a wall to wall screen that we watch the game on. We're pretty serious about football in our family. Hence me going the frozen route.
Now, if you have never tried chicken and waffles, you are truly missing out. In fact, you're probably wondering how this unlikely pair ever became an item. This dish is the epitome of sweet and salty, soft and crunchy and even sweet and spicy. This my friends, is soul food. Way back in 1938 a place known as "Wells" opened in Harlem, NY. Wells was basically the Denny's of it's era- meaning that people went there after going out to jazz clubs and a night of partying. Jazz greats and gospel singers like Gladys Knight, Nat King Cole and Sammy Davis Jr., would waltz into Wells after playing their gigs. It was too late for dinner, but too early for breakfast so the chefs came up with a compromise. They served the musicians a little of both- chicken and waffles.
Years later, in 1976 a Los Angeles restaurant opened that was dedicated exclusively to this sweet and savory pairing. Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles became an American Legend and grown to be an influential part of Hollywood's culinary scene introducing this dish to the masses.
Since then, this dish has become a southern staple. It can be found on every breakfast menu throughout the American southeast. While there are many different variations of it, the basics remain the same- chicken and waffles, paired together to form an absolutely incredible, yet unlikely, pairing.
Chicken and waffles themselves take quite a bit of time to prepare. My goal was to capture the flavor of chicken and waffles without all of the work. Here's what I came up with...
Ingredients:
1 package of frozen popcorn chicken
1 package of frozen bite size waffles (I used Eggo)
Syrup
Optional: Texas Pete
Instructions:
1. Prepare the chicken as directed on the packaging.
2. Using a toaster, warm up 2 bite size waffles for every 1 piece of popcorn chicken.
3. Once the chicken and waffles have been fully cooked, sandwich 1 piece of chicken between 2 bite size waffles. Use a skewer to hold them in place.
4. Place the chicken and waffle skewers on the same baking sheet you used to warm up the chicken. Your oven should be still warm from the chicken. Place the baking sheet in the oven for approximately 5 minutes simply to warm it all back up.
5. Serve with syrup or a combination of syrup and Texas Pete.
I told you it was easy! We found that it was easiest to flip the top waffle over after we put a little bit of syrup and Texas Pete on it so that we could pick the chicken and waffles up and eat them like a little slider.
Chicken and Waffle Sliders are not only perfect for football, but they are also great for parties. This recipe is super fun, super easy and super fast! Be sure to like me on Facebook or follow me on Twitter for more fun, fresh takes on classic dishes. See you next time!