Chicken and Waffles add a sweet-salty twist to Mother’s Day

If you are a brunch person, then you may have noticed a new dish in town, sitting comfortably in recent years alongside longtime favorites like Eggs Benedict and French Toast. It's Chicken and Waffles, current darling of the brunch crowd.

If you are on the hunt for a Mother’s Day dish that will dazzle, put this on your short list.
Chicken and waffles is exactly what it sounds like, with room for interpretation. When I first told my son about this dish several years ago, he said, "You’re making that up. Why would anyone serve that combination?”

Then he tried it, and joined the fan club.

At its most basic, we're talking fried chicken served over fluffy, crispy waffles. The dish has some deep roots, but these days chefs are putting their own twists on a contemporary classic.

In the 18th century, Pennsylvania Dutch settlers served up a different version, featuring stewed chicken and gravy.

But the version now found on menus around the world is the African American one created in Harlem's Wells Supper Club in the 1930s as a late-night, early-morning, post-jazz-club meal. With fried chicken, it's sweet and salty, soft and crunchy.

Chicken and waffles is big among social media food influencers (videoing that syrup or honey drizzle cascading over the mound of chicken is an attention-grabber.)

Roberto (Bobby) Baez is executive chef at The Shed, an "all-day brunch” restaurant with five locations in New York and Connecticut. On a recent day at the Mohegan Sun location, in Uncasville, Connecticut, he served up boneless fried chicken in generous chunks on a skewer, alternating with sections of thick, warm Belgian waffles.

The seasoned flour included classic Southern seasonings like paprika, thyme, garlic powder, onion powder, cornstarch, cayenne, and salt and pepper. Baez pounded the chicken, then further tenderized it in a buttermilk marinade with similar seasonings for up to 48 hours.

"Understanding the sweet-salty aspect is key,” he said. "People crave it.”

Make the waffles just before serving, he advised.

Melba Wilson of Melba’s, in New York City, serves her fried chicken on eggnog waffles (famously beating Bobby Flay in a Food Network Throwdown). In Harlem, Amy Ruth’s is known for waffles with a choice of fried chicken (smothered in gravy or not) or fried chicken wings. Los Angeles is home to Roscoe’s House of Chicken and Waffles, where there are several versions of chicken and waffles, including one with a buckwheat waffle.

The Screen Door in Portland, Oregon, serves fried chicken on a sweet potato waffle. The Early Bird Diner in Charleston, South Carolina, offers pecan-fried chicken on a cinnamon waffle with honey mustard sauce and syrup.

On the fast-casual front, KFC brought back its Chicken and Waffles nationwide in April 2025 after having removed it from menus more than five years ago. Their president, Catherine Tan-Gillespie, called it "an American icon.” And Chick-fil-A has been testing two new Chicken and Waffle sandwiches.

Another big question diving the chicken-and-waffles world: honey or maple syrup?
Syrup is more popular. Baez serves up a house-made smoky and spicy habanero honey, though he confesses he leans toward syrup and butter when he’s on his own.

Chicken and waffles. IYKYK, and if you don’t, you should fix that right away.
My recipe:
Servings: 8
THE CHICKEN
4 cups (1 quart) buttermilk
1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon kosher or coarse salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
3 pounds skin-on, bone-in chicken pieces (thighs, breasts or drumsticks)
4 cups canola or vegetable oil or more as needed, for frying
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon dry mustard powder
1 ½ teaspoons cayenne pepper

Maple syrup or hot honey to serve

Combine the buttermilk, ¼ cup of the salt and 1 ½ teaspoons of the pepper in a very large bowl, stirring well to dissolve the salt. Add the chicken pieces to the bowl, making sure the chicken is thoroughly covered. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours, turning the pieces once or twice to make sure they’re evenly submerged.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place a wire cooling rack on a rimmed baking sheet.
Combine the flour, cornstarch, paprika, mustard powder, cayenne, and remaining 1 teaspoon salt and 1 ½ teaspoons pepper in a large bowl. Remove the chicken from the buttermilk, letting the excess liquid drip off (as you do, smooth out the skin, so it covers the chicken as best as possible). Dip each piece in the flour mixture to coat it thoroughly. Shake off the excess, then place the chicken on the wire racks. (You will finish baking the chicken on the same wire rack-lined baking sheets.)

Pour oil to a depth of 2 inches into a Dutch oven, stockpot, or a skillet that’s at least 4 inches deep. Heat over medium-high heat until the oil is bubbly around the edges, 365°F on a candy or frying thermometer. If you don’t have a thermometer, just drop a cube of bread into the pan; when it turns brown pretty quickly (10 to 15 seconds), the oil is ready.

Ease the chicken pieces into the bubbling oil, making sure not to crowd the pan. Fry the chicken in batches with the oil at a moderately lively bubble, until light golden brown all over, about 4 minutes each side. Place each fried piece back on a wire rack, skin side up; the pieces can be close but not touching. Add oil to the pan as needed and bring it back to the proper temperature before adding more chicken.

Bake the chicken on the rack on the baking sheet until it is cooked through, 30 to 40 minutes. The chicken should register 165°F on an instant-read thermometer inserted near - but not touching - the bone. The time will depend on the size of the pieces, and dark meat will take longer than white. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature on hot waffles (recipe follows) with syrup or hot honey.

Note: You can make the fried chicken a few days ahead and store it in the fridge. Reheat it in a 325°F oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Bring it to room temperature before reheating so that it reheats more quickly and evenly.

BUTTERMILK WAFFLES
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup whole-wheat flour (or another ½ cup all-purpose flour)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs, separated
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

In a large bowl, combine the flours, sugar, baking soda and salt.

In another bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg yolks and melted cooled butter.

In another small bowl, beat the egg whites with a mixer until it forms stiff peaks.

Stir the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture just until barely blended. Gently fold in the egg whites just until incorporated.

Preheat a waffle iron and grease it lightly. Cook the batter in the hot waffle iron, using a generous 1/3 cup of batter for each waffle. Cook until crisp and golden, about 3 to 5 minutes. Serve immediately with fried chicken on top, drizzled with syrup or honey.

Associated Press