She is also an amazing cook who comes up with the best recipes! A lot of them have a lot of steps but every one that I’ve made so far has been so worth it! Ree has a cookbook that has come out that I’m hoping I’m getting for Christmas! She is hilarious with the most down to eart, funny tales about life on the ranch in Oklahoma. If you don’t read The Pioneer Woman you should probably start. The three main marinade components are buttermilk, egg, and cornstarch-the buttermilk aids in juicy tenderness, while the egg and cornstarch start to build the foundation for that final crispy exterior.This week the recipe that I’m featuring is one of The Pioneer Woman’s. The marinade, which also doubles as a batter here (that’s right, it goes straight into the dredge), imparts flavor and tenderizes the meat from the inside out. This breading is built in two steps: (1) the marinade, and (2) the dredge. The key to popcorn chicken built for game day is a thin, shatteringly crisp outer coating that doesn’t overpower the chicken but that provides enough stability to be sauced. When developing my Harissa-Honey Popcorn Chicken, my goal was not only to achieve that elusive crispy-gone-just-barely-soggy bite, but also to fry up a snack that could withstand a couple hours of feasting (because, whew, football games are long). It doesn’t even keep its crisp until halftime.

The one catch? When popcorn chicken is over-breaded, it can lose any semblance of crispiness and be straight up gloopy after only 20 minutes on a buffet.

On any other day, I’m a wing girl, but on game day, give me the sauciest, glossiest, crispy popcorn chicken because the last thing I want is a plateful of bones. The right game day spread can be magical-a wonderland of queso-doused nachos, slow cookers full of party meatballs, the obligatory veggie platter, dips galore, and, the pièce de résistance of football food: popcorn chicken. Some people go to Super Bowl parties for the game (or the halftime show), but me, I go for the food.

Dredge cooked meatballs in flour