Chicken and Waffles with Cannabis-Infused Syrup
Chicken and Waffles is the kind dish that seems made for Instagram, but this popular combo of sweet and savoury comfort foods has actually been delighting diners for centuries. The first mention of chicken and the waffles together traces back to America’s Pennsylvania Dutch country in the early 1600s, predating the invention of the camera by over 200 years, and Instagram by more than 400.
This American classic is incredible on its own, but you can add an extra special Canadian kick by dousing it with our cannabis-infused maple syrup.
Recipe by Chef Ronnie Fishman, words by Devon Scoble.
Ingredients
Fried Chicken:
1 tbsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp mustard powder
1 tbsp black pepper
1.5 tbsp salt
1 litre buttermilk
1.5 tbsp Louisiana or buffalo hot sauce
6 pieces chicken (3 drumsticks, 3 half thighs)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp corn starch
Waffle:
1 cup cake flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
4 eggs, separated
2 cups buttermilk
4 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 jalapeno, sliced thin
1 thumb ginger, grated
2 tbsp cannabis-infused maple syrup(1 tbsp per person)
Method
Fried Chicken:
Place the chicken in a large bowl and toss with a half tablespoon each of cayenne, paprika, mustard powder, salt and pepper (you’ll use the remainder of these ingredients in a later step). Once finished, add the buttermilk and hot sauce to bowl.
Marinate the chicken in the buttermilk for at least one hour, or up to 12 hours for maximum flavouring.
Double dredge the chicken like this:
First remove the chicken pieces from the buttermilk and place them on a wire rack to allow the buttermilk to drip off. Keep the buttermilk mixture nearby. Once finished, combine the flour, corn starch and remaining cayenne pepper, paprika, mustard powder, salt, and pepper in a large bowl.
Next, dredge each piece of chicken in the seasoned flour and place on a separate wire rack until each piece of chicken is fully coated.
Re-dip each piece of chicken into the buttermilk mixture (allowing the excess to drip off) and dip each piece in the seasoned flour to coat it for a second time, shaking off any excess flour.
Heat canola or vegetable oil to 360-375 F in a pan or deep fryer. Deep fry the chicken pieces for 6-10 minutes (until chicken is cooked through and golden brown).
Waffle:
Add cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl. Whisk all ingredients together.
In another bowl, whisk egg yolks and buttermilk. Add vanilla and melted butter to the mixture and incorporate well. If you wish, you can use cannabis-infused cannabutter to enhance the potency of your meal.
Beat the egg whites and tartar together in a small bowl until frothy.
Combine the egg yolk mixture and flour mixture. Whisk thoroughly until everything is mixed in evenly. Very gently fold in the egg white mixture. The batter should be light and frothy at this stage.
Using a waffle iron, cook half the batter until golden brown. Repeat with the other half.
Plate each waffle and add the fried chicken on top. Drizzle with infused syrup, and finish with grated ginger and jalapenos.
