The Mysterious Origins Of Food Court Bourbon Chicken

There are few foods that have an almost Pavlovian ability to conjure images of specific places and experiences, and food court bourbon chicken is certainly one of them. Who doesn't remember wading through malls with those sweet, sticky, glazed chicken delights on toothpicks, alongside a hefty portion of white rice? The name, however, is something of a misnomer: There is no bourbon in most versions of the recipe. And its supposed historical roots in Louisiana are even more nebulous.

Bourbon chicken is said to get its name not from the American whiskey, but rather from New Orleans' iconic Bourbon Street, right at the beating heart of the city's French Quarter. Most accounts claim that a chef working at a Chinese restaurant on the street wanted to blend Asian flavors with the sweet heat of Cajun cooking and concocted the recipe. This narrative has been accepted as a given in many cookbooks, but even that detail is the source of contestation. One Reddit thread dedicated to the topic seemed particularly skeptical. "I began digging deeper, [and] I can only find anecdotal evidence at best," one user wrote. "I can't find any historical evidence that bourbon chicken was invented there."

With its bite-sized chunks, savory-sweet flavor profile, and glossy glaze, bourbon chicken basically sells itself. It makes a tasty, easy-to-eat dish, especially while wandering around the mall. It also calls upon other well-established U.S. food classics, from Chinese-style orange chicken to Cajun honey chicken. It remains a particular source of nostalgia, especially as U.S. mall culture experienced a decline after its heyday in the 1990s. "I always spent my money on [bourbon chicken] when I went to the mall as a teenager," one Redditor remarked. It isn't the only dish slowly being consigned to the dustbin of history, either — plenty of food court staples are difficult to find these days.

Bourbon chicken's delicious flavor and blend of spices make New Orleans — a city known for its vibrant, multicultural culinary heritage — a believable birthplace, although the recipe's genesis remains something of a mystery. Luckily, it's not too difficult to make at home. There are various versions of the dish, although the sauce's main ingredients are typically a mix of soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, and garlic. And yes, you can add bourbon to it, too — and it's not the only Southern chicken recipe that pairs excellently with whiskey.