Ranch Fried Chicken Sandwich by Rachael Ray

Ingredients

For the Refrigerator Overnight Pickles:

• 1 pound seedless cucumber or Persian cucumbers, sliced ¼-inch-thick
• ½ small onion, quartered and thinly sliced (or 1 large shallot, halved and thinly sliced)
• 1 ½ teaspoons yellow mustard seed
• 1 ½ teaspoons coriander seed
• 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
• 2 tablespoons dried dill, or 4 stems fresh dill
• 2 fresh bay leaves
• 2 large cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 cup white or cider vinegar
• 1 cup water
• About ¼ cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt

For the Ranch Marinade and Dressing:

• 1 ½ cups sour cream or Greek yogurt
• ¼ cup buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar or lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons hot sauce (Rach likes Frank's RedHot or Tabasco)
• 2 teaspoons superfine sugar or sugar
• 2 tablespoons dried dill
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 2 tablespoons dried chives
• 2 teaspoons granulated garlic
• 2 teaspoons granulated onion
• Salt, fine black and/or white pepper, to taste

For the Fried Chicken Sandwiches with BLT:

• 6 pieces boneless, skinless chicken cutlets (or 3 horizontally halved chicken breasts, tenders removed)
• 12 slices bacon, halved across
• 1 cup fine bread crumbs
• 1 cup panko
• 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
• 1 tablespoon granulated onion
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• Frying oil, about 1 quart
• 6 slices American cheese or Pepper Jack cheese
• 2 cups shredded Napa, white cabbage or iceberg lettuce
• 6 brioche rolls, halved
• 6 thin slices white or red onion
• 6 thin slices beefsteak tomato

Preparation

For the Refrigerator Overnight Pickles, arrange the cucumbers and onions, seeds, peppercorns, dill, bay and garlic in a Mason jar or airtight container.

Bring to a boil in a small pot the vinegar, water, sugar and salt, dissolve the sugar and salt, then pour over the top of the cucumbers and cool a bit. Cover and refrigerate overnight and keep for up to 3 weeks.  

For the Ranch marinade and dressing, combine all ingredients and divide, placing about ¾ cup in a plastic food storage bag and funnel the rest into a squirt bottle or transfer to an airtight container.

For the sandwiches, place chicken in bag with marinade and refrigerate overnight.  

Preheat oven to 400˚F. Arrange bacon on slotted pan or wire rack-lined baking sheet. Bake until crisp.

Combine breadcrumbs and panko and season with garlic, onion and paprika.

Heat about 1 to 1 ½ inches frying oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat.

Shake excess dressing off chicken and press evenly into coating on both sides. Fry chicken about 3 minutes per each side until deeply golden and cooked through. Drain on wire rack-lined baking sheet and top each piece with 1 slice cheese. Place in the oven to melt. 

Toss cabbage or lettuce with some Ranch dressing.

Assemble sandwiches: bun bottom, pickles, chicken, bacon, onion, tomato, cabbage or lettuce, bun top.