Preparation Īlthough the components of the dish largely remain the same, the preparation of the dish can differ greatly. The popularity of hot chicken has spread beyond the Southern United States due to the influence of Nashville's music industry. There are many restaurants in Nashville that serve a variant of the dish, and there is a citywide festival and competition celebrating it. It can be viewed in similar context to other foods that have been tweaked to be unique in a regional way, such as the slugburger or the Mississippi Delta tamale. It is both the application of a spicy paste and the presentation that differentiates it from similar dishes, such as Buffalo wings. It is served atop slices of white bread with pickle chips. Spice blends, preparation methods, and heat intensity vary from recipe to recipe or depending on the chef. A richly pigmented seasoning paste gives the fried chicken its reddish hue.

This method of preparation originates within African American communities in the Southern United States. In its typical preparation, it is a portion of breast, thigh, or wing that has been marinated in a water-based blend of seasoning, floured, fried, and finally covered in a paste or sauce that has been spiced with cayenne pepper. Hot chicken (or Nashville hot chicken) is a type of fried chicken that is a local specialty of Nashville, Tennessee, in the United States.

Lucky's hot chicken locations