Nashville Hot Chicken Tacos- crispy fried chicken tenders are coated in a cayenne pepper sauce and served in tortillas with pickled jalapeno mayonnaise and dill pickle slices. These southern tacos are HOT & SPICY!
Fantastic for gameday, lunch or dinner. Such a great fusion of southern and Mexican food. I love to think outside the box when it comes to tacos. Just about anything tastes good in a taco.
What I Like About These Nashville Hot Chicken Tacos
The chicken tenders are double coated in flour mixture for a crispy coating.
There’s tons of seasoning. The flour coating is seasoned with cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and white pepper. The spicy sauce that coats the chicken has lots of cayenne pepper and a little brown sugar.
The pickles and the creamy mayonnaise flavored with pickled jalapenos add another flavor dimension.
What Is Nashville Hot Chicken?
It’s a super spicy southern fried chicken that’s flavored with hot sauce and lots of cayenne pepper. It is usually served on white bread with dill pickle chips to help tame the heat.
Use either flour or corn tortillas. Corn tortillas are more authentic, but I prefer flour. Use what you like.
Serving Suggestion
A creamy coleslaw is a really great addition to these tacos. You can use either store-bought or homemade.
Great Sides To Serve With This Recipe
I like to serve southern sides with these tacos.
- Spicy Collard Greens
- Southern Potato Salad
- The BEST Corn on the Cob
- Jalapeno Popper Corn Salad
- Grilled Corn with Chipotle Cream
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More Taco Recipes To Try
- Fry Bread Tacos
- Crunchy Catfish Tacos with Tequila Creamed Corn
- Caribbean Pork Tacos
- Korean Bulgogi Tacos
- Deep Dish Taco Squares
Nashville Hot Chicken Tacos
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders, cut each one in half
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup milk
Flour Coating
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
Pickled Jalapeno Mayonnaise
- 2/3 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped pickled jalapenos
- 1 tablespoon juice from the jar of pickled jalapenos
Remaining Ingredients
- vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 12 small flour tortillas
- shredded iceberg lettuce and sliced grape tomatoes
- chopped dill pickle chips
Instructions
- Whisk together the eggs and milk in a medium bowl. Add chicken. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine all the flour coating ingredients.
- Stir together the pickled jalapeno mayonnaise ingredients in a small bowl. Refrigerate until needed.
- Pour about 1 1/2 inches of oil into a Dutch oven. Heat oil to 350 degrees.
- Remove chicken from milk mixture and dredge in flour mixture.Dip back in the milk mixture and then coat in flour a second time.Working in batches so you don't crowd the pan, cook chicken for abour 4 minutes per batch or until cooked all the way through. Place on a paper towel-lined plate when done cooking.
- Place the cayenne pepper, light brown sugar, paprika, and garlic powder in a medium bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup of the cooking oil. Add chicken and toss to coat.Note: Or you can drizzle the mixture on the chicken if you want to control how spicy it gets.
- Warm the tortillas in a large nonstick skillet.Fill them with lettuce, tomatoes, and chicken. Top with mayonnaise and pickles.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
Ummm, it’s ranch not mayonnaise. I threw up a little in my mouth when I read mayonnaise.
I’m sorry, truly. I meant to say the recipe is spot on and as a guy who ran a hot chicken place in Nashville I have some experience. but the mayo thing is off.