Brine the chicken for 2 hours in a bowl filled with pickle juice, buttermilk, and hot sauce. Once fully brined you can move on to the next steps.

Preheat 3” of canola oil in a pot or dutch oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Take each chicken breast and cut parallel lines almost all of the way through, around ½ a cm apart, down the length of each breast.

Mix together seasoned flour ingredients. Put fried onions into a food processor and pulse to a fine crumb, then mix with bread crumbs and ¼ cup of flour. 

Set up a dredging station. Flour in one bowl, whisked eggs in another, and bread crumbs in the last bowl. 

Dip the chicken into the flour. Spread apart the slits to make sure the flour gets into it and shake off the excess. Then, dip into the eggs, and finally into the bread crumbs. Roll the chicken breast in the crumbs to coat all sides, and separate the slits to be sure the bread crumbs stick inside.  

Use a pair of tongs to lower the chicken into the oil. Hold the chicken with the tongs in the oil to help them hold their shape, about 30 seconds, then remove tongs and cook for 5-7 minutes. Depending on the size of your pot you may need to do more than one batch. Check to be sure the chicken is done by using a meat thermometer, you will want the chicken to reach 165*

While the chicken is cooking, make the Nashville sauce. Whisk together cayenne pepper, brown sugar, garlic salt, and ½ cup of the frying oil.

Once the chicken has finished cooking, place it on a wire rack over a cookie sheet, and drizzle with the Nashville sauce. The wire rack helps the excess oil drip off, and prevents the Nashville sauce from soaking the crust of the chicken- which assures a delicious crunch in every bite!

Top the Nashville Hasselback chicken with sliced dill pickles and serve immediately. Enjoy!