Copycat Wendy’s Spicy Chicken Fillet Sandwich

"A delicious spicy fried chicken sandwich in a toasted potato bun with lettuce, tomato and mayo."
 
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photo by Jonathan Melendez photo by Jonathan Melendez
photo by Jonathan Melendez
photo by Jonathan Melendez photo by Jonathan Melendez
photo by Jonathan Melendez photo by Jonathan Melendez
Ready In:
50mins
Ingredients:
16
Serves:
4
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ingredients

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directions

  • In a large bowl, combine the chicken, jalapeño juice, buttermilk and hot sauce. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour, more if you have the time.
  • In a shallow bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, pepper, onion, garlic, and chili powder.
  • To dredge the chicken, remove each piece from the buttermilk mixture and dip into the seasoned flour. Dip once again into the buttermilk and once more into the dry ingredients. Place the dredged chicken on a wire rack set over a baking sheet and continue coating the remaining chicken pieces. Allow the coated chicken to rest while you heat up the oil. This will prevent the coating from falling off during frying.
  • Pour the oil into a large pot and heat up to 365 degrees F. Carefully lower the chicken into the hot oil, cooking it in batches to not overcrowd the pan. Fry until golden brown and the chicken reaches 165 degrees, about 4 to 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the chicken from the oven and place on a clean wire rack, set over a baking sheet.
  • Set a large pan or griddle over medium high heat, melt the butter and toast the buns, cut side down.
  • To assemble the sandwiches, spread the buns with mayonnaise and place a chicken on each bottom bun. Top with lettuce and tomato and the top bun. Serve immediately.

Questions & Replies

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Reviews

  1. My son woke up wanting Wendy's spicy chicken sandwich and I attempted to make it. I didn't have pickled jalapeno juice so I used sriracha sauce instead, but obviously not as much. I added sprinkle of hot sauce. Even though, it was not spice. Also, he's lactose intolerant so I used Lactaid milk instead of buttermilk. I'm not sure that made a difference. But I was puzzled by this: "Using a slotted spoon, remove the chicken from the oven and place on a clean wire rack, set over a baking sheet. (Remove the chicken from the oven?!) When did the recipe called for using the oven." I assume that's an error, but it had me reading the recipe over and over to make sure I didn't miss a step. Thanks for the effort nonetheless. My son liked them, but he added more hot sauce for spiciness.
     
  2. No ingredients were wasted and i appreciate this recipe was measured exceptionally well. I followed the recipe exactly and i couldn't taste any spice/spicy in the chicken. This was disappointing, as my husband and son love Wendy's spicy chicken and upon eating their 2nd sandwich, they sprinkled Tabasco sauce and still had a problem tasting any spice. I would love the person who posted this tweak it until it is spicy, because it's almost there.
     
  3. I'm not sure what happened but was not spicy. I did add a slight sprinkling of ghost pepper once out of the oil and that gave the rest what I was looking for. Other than that the chicken had a good crust. I think next time I'll use cayenne pepper instead of chili pepper.
     
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Tweaks

  1. Hold the tomatoes, put four slices of dill pickle and a 1/8” slice of sweet onion on top of the lettuce. Enjoy!
     
  2. Exchange the chili powder with cayenne pepper.
     

RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

Jonathan Melendez is a passionate author, food photographer, cook, baker, and recipe developer whose blog, The Candid Appetite, has appeared prominently on such sites as, BonAppetite, People, Cosmopolitan, The Kitchn, Today, The Cooking Channel, Food52 and Joy the Baker. He has created and photographed recipes for Idaho Potato Commission, Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board, American Butter Institute and Jones Dairy Farm, to name a few. He lives in Los Angeles, CA.
 
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