And you know what?
They are (or were, at least) very good!
But flavor wise, the competition isnt quite the blowout that Twitter made it out to be.
These are very different sandwiches, and they could learn a thing or two from each other.
Chick-fil-A, on the other hand, has a strong, easily-identified flavor.
Popeyes sandwich, for all its window dressings, really doesnt taste like all that much in comparison.
The less-good news is that its a little labor intensive.
Do not do this!
For four sandwiches, take two normal, medium-sized chicken breast (roughly 8 ounces) and butterfly them.
Trim off any super-thin remnants, lest they turn into drywall when you eventually fry them.
I went with a standard wet brine, with salt and half as much sugar dissolved into cold water.
If you go that route, leave the bird boobs to soak for no more than 4-5 hours.
Call it 1-2 hours on the dry brine, if you choose that path.
The seasoning
This is where Chick-fil-A packs the rest of their flavor into their sandwich.
Half goes on the brined chicken, and half goes into the flour dredge.
And againif youre dry brining instead, go ahead and mix it in at that step.
As mentioned, Popeyes doesnt seem to list ingredients anywhere on their website.
The only hint they give about their sandwich is a new buttermilk coating, so we know thats involved.
The rest I had to work out myself.
Consider this video behind the scenesat Chick-fil-A, and this one filmed ina Popeyes kitchen.
A couple of differences are apparent.
These are good clues!
First the egg wash.
I used three eggs plus one extra yolk to make it extra thick.
Popeyes says theres buttermilk, so in go a few glugs of that.
The last ingredient comes from a Serious Eats post onhomemade General Tsos chicken: vodka.
The rest should all be familiar.
Take a seasoned chicken breast and dunk it into the egg mix.
Repeat with the other piece of chicken, and its fry time.
Popeyes, on the other hand, fries in regular deep friers at 340 degrees.
We can manage that!
Put it over medium-high heat, and keep an eye on it with an instant-read or candy thermometer.
Once it hits about 355 degrees, in goes one of the breaded breasts.
If you, like me, were dumb enough to use entire breasts, strap in for a while.
Youre looking at probably 10-12 minutes, constantly monitoring the oil temperature and adjusting.
Otherwise if you were smart and used halved breasts, theyll be done in five or six minutes.
Get the first one on some paper towels, and drop the next one.
If you were smart enough not to, yours shouldnt be quite this dark, either.
you could find them find anywhere fancy buns are sold.
Toast them in lots of butter.
I wanted to strike a balance between the two, so make pickles.
Its easy and stupid-proof!
The cool thing about pickles is that you dont need a recipe.
The onlyrequirementsfor pickles are vinegar and cucumbers.
Dill is obviously a mainstay, but you almost certainly dont have that.
Bring the mixture briefly to a simmer, then pour over half a cucumber sliced into 14-inch thick rounds.
Weigh them down with a paper towel to keep them submerged.
The sauce
Popeyes website describes the sauce as spicy mayonnaise.
(Im an easy mark and Im fine with that.)
At long last, thats it.
A salty, savory, distinctly Chick-fil-A-flavored piece of chicken.
Bright, fresh, briny pickles.
A sauce that is definitely there.
Place chicken breasts in freezer bag, and fill with brine.
Place in fridge for no more than 4-5 hours.
Bring to a simmer, and then pour over cucumber slices.
Make the sauce: In a bowl, combine mayo, cayenne pepper, and cajun seasoning until well-mixed.
As the chicken finishes brining, prepare breading station.
Mix cayenne pepper, black pepper, paprika and MSG in a small bowl.
In another, mix eggs, egg yolk, buttermilk, and vodka.
In a large bowl or tupperware, mix flour, baking powder and approximately half of the spice mixture.
Drizzle 3-4 tablespoons of egg mixture into seasoned flour, mixing with fingers until it resembles wet sand.
Once the chicken is done, pat dry.
Season with remaining spice mixture, and then bread it.
Dip each breast half into the egg mixture, then transfer to the seasoned flour.
Use your dry hand to heap flour over the chicken, pressing firmly.
Meanwhile, prepare cooking oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
Once it reads 350-355F on a thermometer, drop the first chicken breast.
Transfer breast half to a plate lined with paper towels, and repeat with rest of chicken.
Assemble sandwiches starting with the bottom bun, about 2 teaspoons of sauce, and four pickle slices.
Top with fried chicken, then finish with top bun plus another 2 teaspoons of sauce.
