I woke up this morning with a craving for chicken and waffles. I think it was because there’s a chill in the air as fall starts descending on us…and because I just had a taste for a little southern comfort. Either way, I put this little recipe together and added a bit of fresh sage to the chicken and some bourbon sautéed apples as an extra topper for the waffles. It’s a tasty combination and I hope you enjoy it
Chicken and Sage Waffles with Apple Syrup
makes 4 servings
Ingredients
Chicken and Marinade
1 med Chicken, cut up
2 cu Buttermilk
1 tsp Salt
1/2 Pepper
1 tsp Oregano
1/2 tsp Paprika
Sage Leaves
Batter
1 1/2 cu Flour
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Pepper
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Onion Powder
1 tsp fresh Sage, minced (or 1/2 tsp dry sage)
32 oz Canola Oil
4-5 additional Whole Sage Leaves (optional) for garnish
Apple Syrup
2 lg Apples, peeled cored and sliced
2 tbl Butter
1 1/2 tbl Sugar
1 tbl Bourbon
1/4 cu Maple Syrup
Waffles
1 cu Milk
2 Eggs
1/2 cu Pumpkin Puree
1 tsp Bourbon
1 1/4 cu Flour
1/4 cu Brown Sugar
1/8 tsp Salt
1 tsp Baking Soda
Additional Maple Syrup
Method
To marinated chicken, mix together buttermilk, salt, pepper, oregano, and paprika in a large sealable container. Add three sage leaves and the chicken peaces. Be sure all pieces are submerged. Seal container and marinate the chicken for 4 hours to overnight.
When ready to prepare the chicken, remove the container from the refrigerator and let it rest at room temperature for 20 minutes. Mix flour, baking soda, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and one teaspoon of freshly minced sage in a large disposable bag. Shake to combine ingredients and set aside. Heat canola oil in a deep saucepan over medium high heat. Preheat your oven to warm. Place a wire rack over an aluminum foil lined baking sheet and put it in the oven.
You’ll probably have to fry the chicken two batches. When oil is hot, coat the chicken pieces in flower by removing them from the marinade, shaking off excess liquid, and dropping them into the disposable bag and shaking to coat. Lift pieces from the bag and shake off any excess flour. Carefully place chicken in the hot oil. Cover and fry for about 10 minutes. Turn the chicken and fry for an additional 10 minutes. Be sure heat is medium high. If oil is too hot, the crust on the chicken will burn before it is fully cooked inside. The internal temperature of the chicken should be 165 degrees F. Remove chicken from the oil and place on the wire rack in the oven. Fry the remaining chicken. When you’re removed the second batch of chicken, drop whole sage leaves in the hot oil for about 1 minute until crispy. Drain on paper towels.
Meanwhile, make the apple syrup by melting butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add apples and sugar and sauté until apples are tender, about 5 minutes. Carefully add bourbon and sauté for an additional 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add maple syrup. Stir to combine and set aside.
To make the waffles, mix together the eggs, pumpkin, milk and bourbon in a bowl. in a separate larger bowl, mix together remaining dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix throughly. Spray a preheated waffle iron with cooking spray and prepare your waffles according to your waffle maker directions.
To serve, place a waffle on a serving plate. Arrange apples on top of the waffles and arrange two pieces of chicken over the apples. Garnish with a fried sage leaf and serve with additional maple syrup.