Name: Buffalo chicken
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h 5 min
Total time: 1 h 35 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 ½kg chicken thighs and drumsticks; 180g sea salt flakes; 90g soft dark brown sugar; 2 tbsp chilli flakes; 2 tbsp sweet smoked paprika; 1 tbsp ground cumin; 1 tbsp sea salt flakes; 1 tbsp dark brown sugar; 75g butter; 125ml hot chilli sauce; 1 tbsp maple syrup

For the brine - to make them juicy

1 ½kg chicken thighs
and drumsticks
180g sea salt
flakes
90g soft dark brown sugar
2 tbsp chilli flakes

For the spice mix - to make them tasty

2 tbsp sweet smoked paprika
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp sea salt
flakes
1 tbsp dark brown sugar

For the sauce - to add some heat

75g butter
125ml hot chilli sauce
1 tbsp maple syrup

Method

step 1
Put the chicken in a big bowl. In a pan, heat 1 litre of water with the salt, brown sugar and chilli flakes. When it’s dissolved, add 2 litres of cold water and pour over the chicken. Put in the fridge and leave for at least 2 hrs, but ideally a day or two. When you’re ready to cook, take the chicken out of the water and pat dry all over with kitchen paper.
step 2
Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Put the smoked paprika, ground cumin, sea salt and dark brown sugar on a baking tray. Mix them together, then roll the dried chicken pieces in the spices, making sure everything is covered. Roast the chicken for 1 hr or until crispy and caramelised.
step 3
Meanwhile, for the sauce, gently melt the butter in a small pan with the hot sauce and maple syrup. When the chicken pieces come out of the oven, drizzle this sauce all over them and give them a shake. Serve with a side of creamed corn.