Los Angeles’ culinary scene is one of the best in the country, and now there’s a book to prove it. Food and travel writer Alison Clare Steingold collected recipes from all the top restaurants in the City of Angels. From infamous duo Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo’s Son of a Gun comes this fried chicken sandwich with a spicy slaw so good you’ll start house hunting in L.A. ASAP.
Only the few can join the eleite ranks of Oakland’s Bakesale Betty and Nashville’s Acme Feed & Seed. But L.A. got its very own fried chicken sando winner when Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo anchored their seafood-driven menu at Son of a Gun with straight-up turf. Diners have no shame in ordering seconds, so you may just want to go ahead and double this recipe. The hot sauce-mayo and sweet-spicy slaw are both dead easy to make. For a party, use smaller rolls, slice the breasts into tenders and sling sliders.
File this life-hack away for the next time you’re out of buttermilk: Stir 1 teaspoon white vinegar or lemon juice into whole milk and let stand for 5 minutes at room temperature.
Ingredients
Rooster Aioli
- 1 garlic clove, finely grated
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon Louisiana-style hot sauce
Spicy B&B Pickle Slaw
- 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
- 4 cups thinly sliced cabbage
- 1/2 cup bread-and-butter pickle slices
- 1/4 cup pickle juice from the jar
Fried Chicken
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt, plus more as needed
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 (8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, halved crosswise
- peanut or vegetable oil, for frying
To Assemble
- 4 white sandwich rolls, split
- 2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
Directions
For the aioli and slaw
Mix the garlic, mayonnaise and hot sauce in a small bowl. Cover and chill. Toss the onion, jalapeno, cabbage, pickles and pickle juice in a large bowl to combine. Cover and chill.
For the chicken
Set out two shallow bowls. Whisk the flour with the pepper and salt into the first. Into the second, pour the buttermilk. Working with 1 piece at a time, dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, shaking off any excess. Dip in the buttermilk, allowing any excess to drip back into the bowl. Dredge again, and again shake off any excess flour.
Pour oil into a large, heavy skillet to a depth of 1/2 inch and heat over the medium heat to 350ºF. Set a wire rack over a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Add the floured chicken to the hot oil and fry until golden brown and cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Using a spatula, transfer pieces to the rack. Season to taste.
For the assembly
Spread the cut sides of the rolls with butter. Heat a second skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, toast the rolls, buttered-side down, until browned and crisp, about 1 minute. Remove and spread with the spicy mayo. Build sandwiches on the rolls with chicken on the bottom, topped with the chilled slaw. Serve immediately.
