Sunday Night Football Food

The fall tradition I missed most when I lived overseas was watching football on Sundays. Probably 25 percent of missing it had to do with the food I associate with football, namely chicken wings.

This Sunday, we whipped up some all-American football food. Chicken wings are a bit of a pain in the butt to make (oil splattering everywhere, burns on my forearms--that will have to wait until the Super Bowl). So I opted instead for buffalo chicken sandwiches (admittedly inspired by Wendy's), mac n' cheese, and string bean salad.

*As a note since this is the first recipe I'm posting: I am not really good at measuring things, but I will do my best to convey the general proportions. In general, season as you like, unless otherwise noted.

Buffalo chicken sandwiches:
To start, I made fried chicken the way my mom taught me. (The BF calls it Northeastern-fried chicken to differentiate from the Southern variety. Obviously mine is far superior, and I am convinced healthier, but that is an ongoing debate.)

Ingredients:
chicken breasts (filleted in half)
breadcrumbs
egg
canola oil (you could use vegetable oil if you prefer)
buffalo sauce or hot sauce
buns

Directions:
For really moist meat, brine chicken breasts for at least an hour (up to 24 hours) in the fridge. Just stick them in a bowl with water and a lot of salt, cover with saran wrap, and let them soak. (You can make fancier brines, but I usually save those for things like Thanksgiving turkey since they take more time.)

Dip the chicken in egg wash and then coat with bread crumbs. Pan fry* in oil in saute pan on medium-high heat until brown. (Make sure the oil is hot before you put the chicken in! If you can't tell, toss a piece of onion or bread or pretty much whatever in and see if it sizzles.) Flip and brown the other side of the chicken. Drain on a paper towel for a few minutes. Coat liberally with buffalo sauce. Then bake in the oven on 450 degrees for 5 minutes. (This bakes in the sauce and makes it nice and crispy, instead of saucy, messy, mushy, and generally less appetizing.)

*Pan fry means that the oil only covers the food half way, the food is not totally submerged as with deep frying.

I suggest throwing a little ranch or blue cheese on the bun and some lettuce for garnish. Delish!