Barbecue Pulled Chicken with Southern Style Corn Cakes

I have really been craving southern food lately. I don't know if it is because I will be in the south soon for my sister, Ali's, graduation, or because I am looking for excuses to eat barbecue sauce, but I just want some southern cooking. I used to work in a barbecue restaurant, and they had everything from fried pickles to chocolate covered bacon, slow cooked brisket to collard greens. They obviously had pulled pork and chicken, and the dinner plate was served with these nifty little corn cakes underneath. They were sooo good. Sort of like a flat cornbread muffin. I thought I would try to recreate this recipe, with homemade barbecue sauce and homemade corn cakes.....did I mention I am pretty much as far North as you can get?

Barbecue Pulled Chicken with Southern Style Corn Cakes

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast cooked and shredded

Corn Cakes

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

Barbecue Sauce

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

3/4 cup ketchup

1/8 cup soy sauce

1/8 cup Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon mustard powder

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon hot sauce or Sambal Oelek chili paste

Your chicken can really be cooked however you prefer. Boil it, bake it, roast it, grill it. I boiled mine, because it was the quickest, but if you want some extra smokey flavor, grilling is the way to go. So cook your chicken (leftover chicken works great too), and set aside to cool. 

Barbecue ingredients....and....a pouty dog? 

Next is the sauce. In a medium saucepan, add all of the ingredients for the sauce and bring to a simmer for 5 to 10 minutes. Once Sauce has simmered, combined, and thickened, it is ready for the chicken. I reserved about 1/2 cup of sauce for later, to pour over the chicken. 

You can shred or chop your chicken. I did a little of both, because shredding gets tedious after about 1 minute! After chicken is all shredded add to sauce and place over low heat. This can cook all day, or just long enough to warm through. The longer the better though!

Once your chicken is simmered and flavored to your liking you are ready to make your corn cakes! In a small bowl ( I used something easy to pour out of), add your milk and egg and whisk to combine. Add the dry ingredients and stir until mixture is smooth. Next, heat a medium pan over medium-high heat. Now this is a southern dish, so don't be afraid of the butter :) Add butter to grease the pan and pour in 1/4-1/2 cup of the mixture. Wait about 45 seconds and flip, just like a pancake. They should be nice a toasted brown on both sides. 

To assemble, place a corn cake on your plate, top with a heaping spoonful of pulled chicken, and drizzle with reserved barbecue sauce. You can garnish with green onions, cheese, and even avocado!