POLOKWANE – Chicken and waffles is an American dish combining chicken with waffles. It is part of a variety of culinary traditions, including soul food and Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine, and is served in certain specialty restaurants in the United States.
What’s for Dinner says with just the right kick of peri-peri, these chicken pieces are perfectly crispy on the outside and deliciously juicy on the inside. Serve them with light, fluffy pumpkin waffles, a drizzle of sweet & spicy syrup, and a crisp green salad on the side.
Ingredients
– 320ml buttermilk
– 7ml salt
– 12 chicken pieces (thighs & drumsticks)
– 875ml flour
– 1 x Knorr Peri-Peri Sauce
– vegetable oil, for deep-frying
– 300ml cooked pumpkin cubes
– 10ml baking powder
– 3 eggs
– 100g butter, melted
– 5ml vanilla extract
– 60ml water
– 125ml golden syrup
Method
– Measure out 500ml of the buttermilk and 5ml of the salt and mix them together in a large bowl. Add the chicken pieces, cover, and place in the fridge to marinate overnight.
– In a separate bowl, mix 375ml of the flour with half the contents of the sachet of KNORR Peri-Peri Sauce. Take 45ml of the buttermilk from the bowl in which the chicken is marinating, and add it to the flour/peri-peri mixture. Using a fork, lightly mix the buttermilk into the flour to form small clumps. This step will create extra-crispy bits when you’re frying the chicken.
– Heat the oil to 175 °C in a deep pot. Remove the chicken pieces from their bowl, shake off the excess marinade, then dip the chicken into the flour mixture, one piece at a time.
– Carefully add 2 or 3 pieces of coated chicken at a time to the hot oil. Avoid overcrowding the pot, as this will reduce the temperature of the oil. Deep fry the pieces for 8-10 minutes until crispy and golden, and them keep warm while you cook the remaining pieces.
– To make the waffles, preheat a waffle iron. Put the cooked pumpkin cubes in a blender or food processor and whizz them to form a smooth purée (add a little water if necessary). Place 250ml of the purée in a big bowl and stir in the baking powder, the remaining 500ml flour and 2ml salt.
– In a separate jug, whisk together the remaining 250ml buttermilk, the eggs, melted butter and vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and lightly mix – the batter does not have to be completely smooth. Add about 250ml batter to your preheated and greased waffle iron, and cook the waffles for 3-5 minutes, or until golden. Repeat until you have used up all the batter.
– Make the syrup while the waffles are cooking. In a small saucepan, mix together the remaining half-sachet of KNORR Peri-Peri Sauce, the water and the golden syrup. Simmer over a low heat until slightly thickened.
– Serve the chicken on top of the waffles, drizzled with the spicy, sweet syrup.
