Nashville Hot Chicken Pizza

This Nashville hot chicken pizza is topped with Alabama white sauce as the base with shredded mozzarella cheese, hot fried chicken garnished with chopped pickles. If you’re a fan of buffalo chicken pizza then this recipe is for you!

Course pizza

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword cayenne, chicken, chili, fried chicken, hot chicken, nashville, pizza, pizza dough

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 30

Servings

Calories 1192kcal

Ingredients

For the Alabama White Sauce:

½ cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon (packed) dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon Worcestershire
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder

The Nashville Hot Chicken:

Vegetable oil, as needed, for frying
1 cup all-purpose flour
Kosher salt, as needed
Freshly ground black pepper, as needed
1 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vinegar-based hot sauce
1 pound chicken breasts, sliced into 1” strips
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon (packed) dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon garlic powder

For the Pizza and Assembly:

1 pound pizza dough risen as needed
Cornmeal as needed
1½ cups shredded low-moisture mozzarella cheese
2 dill pickles chopped

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For the Alabama White Sauce;

In a medium mixing bowl whisk together the mayonnaise, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, horseradish, Worcestershire, red pepper flakes, black pepper, garlic powder and onion powder with 1 tablespoon of water until completely combined.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. I add to a squeeze bottle for easy drizzling.

For The Nashville Hot Chicken:

In a large cast iron pot or skillet, add enough vegetable oil to reach 1” up the side of the pan and heat to 350ºF.
In a medium shallow bowl, add the flour and season with salt and pepper. In another medium bowl whisk the buttermilk, egg and hot sauce together.
Working one piece at a time, dip the chicken in the buttermilk mixture then dredge in the flour.
Shake off any excess flour and fry in the oil, flipping once, until the chicken is golden brown on all sides and cooked through, about 6 minutes. Remove the chicken and allow it to drain on a paper towel-lined plate.
In a small bowl whisk together the cayenne, brown sugar, chili powder, paprika and garlic powder. Add ⅓ cup of the hot vegetable oil and whisk to combine. Use a pastry brush to brush the seasoning mixture on all sides of the fried chicken then chop into ½” chunks.
Set the remaining spice oil aside.

For the Pizza and Assembly:

Place pizza stone on grill or in oven and heat to 500ºF.
Divide the dough in half and on a lightly floured surface, working one half at a time, press out each half of dough into a 10” circle. The dough should be fairly thin. Generously spread cornmeal over the pizza peel then add the dough on top.
Work one pizza at a time, Use a pizza peel to slide the dough onto the pizza stone. Cook until the crust is a pale brown and bubbly, about 6 minutes.
Top the pizza with ¼ cup of the Alabama white sauce, leaving about a 1” crust around the sides. Spread half the mozzarella cheese on top followed by about ¾ cup of the chopped chicken.
Return to the oven until the crust is golden brown and slightly charred in spots and the cheese has melted, about 6 minutes.
Top the pizza with 2 tablespoons of the chopped pickles, a drizzle of the Alabama white sauce and a drizzle of the remaining hot oil.
Cut into slices and serve.

Nutrition