Nashville Hot Chicken Dip Recipe

Nashville hot chicken has one of the most recognizable flavor profiles in American cuisine, combining the heat of cayenne, a touch of sweetness, and the tang of pickles. Add chicken and copious amounts of cheese, and you've got yourself a dip worthy of any celebration.

As a recipe developer and blogger, I find Nashville hot chicken can be a bit limiting. A platter of very strongly and specifically flavored fried chicken isn't for everyone, and it can be a hassle to make. But turn it into a dip, and the same flavor opens up to endless possibilities. This Nashville hot chicken dip delivers the same heat, the same sweet-spicy depth, and the same hit of pickle that makes Nashville hot chicken so beloved, in a format that everyone can dig into with a cracker. In fact, the crackers here are mandatory, and do double-duty both as a vehicle for the dip and as a crunchy layer on top of it.

Making this dip isn't hard, and that's a big part of its appeal. It starts with a hot paste that combines several types of chiles and continues with a cheesy chicken dip base, and then it's just a matter of layering and baking. A drizzle of honey and some freshness from herbs and tang from pickles added in the last minute is the final touch this dip needs. And as a bonus, it even reheats really well.

For the Nashville hot paste that gives this dip its name, you'll need unsalted butter, cayenne pepper, brown sugar, smoked paprika, garlic powder, black pepper, kosher salt, chipotle powder, and crushed red pepper flakes. For the chicken mix, you'll need softened cream cheese, sour cream, sharp cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese, dill pickle brine, garlic powder, onion powder, kosher salt, black pepper, shredded rotisserie chicken, and Ritz crackers. You will need Ritz crackers or toasted bread for serving these, alongside honey, fresh chives, and dill pickle slices for decorating.

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Whisk in the cayenne, brown sugar, smoked paprika, garlic powder, black pepper, salt, chipotle powder, and red pepper flakes.

Cook for 1–2 minutes until fragrant and glossy. Remove from heat and set aside.

Beat the cream cheese until smooth.

Combine it in a large bowl with sour cream, cheddar, mozzarella, pickle brine, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper and mix until fully combined.

Fold in the shredded chicken.

Pour in three-quarters of the Nashville hot paste and stir to incorporate.

Transfer the mixture to a 9-inch cast iron skillet or baking dish and spread it out evenly.

Drizzle the remaining hot paste over the top.

Transfer half the Ritz crackers to a plastic bag and crush them using a rolling pin. Alternatively, you can also pulse them in a food processor until they resemble bread crumbs.

Top the dip with the cracker mixture and bake for 20–25 minutes until it's bubbling at the edges and golden on top.

Drizzle with honey and scatter chives and a few pickle slices over the top.

Serve the Nashville hot chicken dip immediately with pickle slices and toasted bread or crackers alongside.

• Dutch-Oven Kettle Chips With Onion Dip Recipe
• Low-Carb Onion Ring Chips Recipe
• Chili Lime Sweet Potato Chips Recipe
• 3-Ingredient Spicy Plantain Chips Recipe
• Homemade Chili Lime Tortilla Chips

Nashville hot chicken actually has a rather interesting history that began, unsurprisingly, in the city of blues, jazz, and country. Specifically, in of the city's famous establishments, Prince's Hot Chicken Shack by Thornton Prince III, which has been around since 1945.

As the story goes, Prince was a known philanderer, gallivanting around town with a different paramour every night. When his affronted girlfriend decided to punish him one night by making a particularly spicy chicken, her plan backfired. Prince allegedly fell in love with the dish, if not the girlfriend, and shared it with all of his family and friends. And thus, the Nashville Hot Chicken was born.

Prince's Hot Chicken Shack is still run by his descendants today, and the lore of the dish's history remains popular. But the unique dish stayed mostly local for a long time, until in the 2010s, social media began covering the dish and popularizing it around the country. With hundreds of variations online, Nashville Hot Chicken has become Insta-famous, and no less delicious for it.

It's hard to mess with such a famous recipe, but we can think of a few adaptations you can make to this legendary dip. Heat levels are the most obvious place to start. If you want it stronger, you can add a teaspoon of ghost pepper powder to the mix for another heat dimension, or simply increase the crushed red pepper flakes. Adding jalapeño jack to the cheese mix also works. To dial the spice back, reduce the cayenne by half and cut the chipotle powder entirely. Just don't change the brown sugar amounts, as it helps keep the balance of everything in check.

For a smokier, even richer version, my husband loves it when I add four to six strips of crumbled crispy bacon or fried smoky pancetta into the chicken mixture. It adds a touch of salt and fat that works with the heat.

When I'm short on prep time, I turn to the slow cooker for this dish. After making the hot Nashville paste, combine the dip components you would normally put in a cast iron pan in the slow cooker. Cook on low for two to three hours, stirring once halfway through, until everything is perfectly melted and combined. When ready to serve, transfer to a serving dish or keep the slow cooker warm, and top with the remainder of the toppings. I like to pan-fry the crackers to make them crunchy and crispy as a topping, if I follow this method.

• Party-Pleasing Taco Dip Recipe
• Creamy Spinach Dip Recipe
• Whipped Feta Dip Recipe
• 3-Ingredient Queso Dip Recipe
• Jalapeño Popper Dip Recipe