Chick-fil-A may have been the first to introduce a fried chicken sandwich to the fast-food scene, but Wendy's is credited with creating the original spicy fried chicken sandwich. Hardee's offers a budget-friendly version of the sandwich, made with a processed chicken burger instead of a chicken breast. To make the sandwich, a boneless chicken breast is seasoned and then breaded in a mixture of peppers before frying it in 100% refined peanut oil. Popeye's has recently released a Buffalo Ranch style spicy chicken sandwich for a limited time.
The standard version includes a piece of crispy chicken and chipotle sauce stuffed into a folded mini flatbread. Culver's Grilled Spicy Chicken Deluxe features a marinated chicken breast topped with buffalo sauce, garlic aioli and spicy cucumber chips on a brioche roll. Taco Bell is currently testing its crispy chicken sandwich taco, available in both regular and spicy versions. A spicy chicken sandwich is typically made from a boneless white chicken breast whose breading is seasoned with a spicy mixture of peppers and spices.
The dish has its roots in Nashville, where Thornton Price III opened the original BBQ Chicken Shack in the 1930s and found local success with its fried chicken seasoned with cayenne pepper.
