My fried chicken fried recipe is juicy, tender and super easy to prepare.
What is fried chicken to me?
It’s no secret that fried chicken is a staple of southern cuisine. There’s nothing like the smell of fried chicken coming from your mother’s or grandmother’s kitchen. Fried chicken is one of those things that just the thought of it makes you happy.
Being from Alabama, I can positively say that I’ve had fried chicken prepared in every way imaginable. In the many years of enjoying fried chicken, I’ve mastered how to cook it several ways. So, today I am sharing one of the many ways I like to prepare my fried chicken. This method is very simple. It doesn’t require a long marination or brine period. While those methods are great, sometimes we prefer a meal we can prepare quickly, but delicious. This fried chicken recipe is just that.
Prepping the chicken
When preparing fried chicken, it is important to season every layer. When I say every layer, I mean the chicken, the egg wash and the flour mixture. This ensures you have flavor throughout your chicken.
My favorite seasonings to use are sea salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and Italian seasoning. First, season your chicken with these seasonings and let it sit at room temperature. Letting the chicken sit at room temperature will prevent the chicken from cooking unevenly. If you’ve ever had chicken that was cooked perfectly on the outside, but almost still raw on the inside, this is probably the reason why.
The egg wash is the next step. I use three beaten eggs, hot sauce and kosher salt. Kosher is lighter in sodium volume, and is perfect as we are only using it to add a little flavor to our binder.
The flour mixture consists of all-purpose flour, cornstarch, and the same seasonings we used o season the chicken. Flour and cornstarch both are used because we want that outter layer of the chicken to be crispy, with a tender, juicy inside.
Dip the chicken in the egg wash mixture, then thoroughly coat in the flour mixture. Do not cake too much flour on the chicken. This will result in the outter layer of your chicken being very thick, soggy and wet. Let the chicken sit for a minimum of 15 minutes to absorb the flour. This will help make sure the breading sticks to the chicken.
Frying process
When frying, I prefer to use a large cast iron skillet, or a dutch oven. If neither of those options are available to you, use any heavy bottom skillet or pot.
Add about 2-3 inches of oil, and heat to a minimum of 350 degrees F. I typically heat my oil over medium heat. Add the chicken a piece at a time. Do not crowd pot. Only about three pieces at a time is needed. Crowding the pot will reduce the heat of the oil, and that will hinder the crispiness of your chicken. It is important to monitor your oil throughout the process. Oil should not get hotter than 385 degrees F. If your oil gets too hot, stop the process and reduce heat. Do not continue until it is below 385 degrees F.
Once chicken hits an internal temperature of 165 degrees, remove it from oil and let it rest on a wire rack. If you don’t have a meat thermometer, don’t be afraid to cut a piece open to make sure it is cooked through. However, I suggest investing in a meat thermometer.
If you won’t be serving your chicken immediately, preheat your oven to 200 degrees F, and place chicken in there. This will help your chicken retain it’s crispy texture and moisture.
Reheating left over fried chicken
Many people I know don’t like day old fried chicken because they feel it won’t be crispy as it was the previous day. Well, if you would like your leftover chicken the next day, just simply pull that chicken out of the fridge, and preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Let the chicken sit out for a minimum of 20 minutes. Place the chicken on a wire rack, and place it oven. A wire rack will prevent the bottom of your chicken from becoming mushy. Heat the chicken in the oven for about 10 minutes. The chicken is ready when the internal temp. is 125 degrees F.
The air fryer can be used to reheat chicken as well. The only difference is you will set the temp to 375 degrees F, and cook it for 15 minutes instead.
I hope you try this recipe, and love it as much as my family and I do.
Fried Chicken
Ingredients
- 2.5 – 3 lbs. chicken pieces thighs, wings, breasts, legs
- 3 tsp. sea salt
- 1 1/2 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. black pepper
- 1 1/2 tsp. paprika
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
Flour mixture
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp. cornstarch
- 2 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 2 tsp. paprika
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
- 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. black pepper
Egg wash
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 1/3 cup hot sauce
- 1 tsp kosher salt
Oil
- peanut, vegetable or canola oil for frying
Instructions
- In a large bowl, season chicken with sea salt, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper, paprika and Italian seasoning. Use hands to work seasonings throughout chicken. Let sit for 30 minutes at room temperature.
- In another bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients for the flour mixture. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, hot sauce and kosher salt.
- Once chicken has sat for 30 minutes, dip chicken in egg wash, then transfer to flour mixture. Fully coat the chicken in flour mixture. Place chicken on a wire rack to rest. Repeat this step until all chicken pieces are battered. Let chicken rest for at least 15 minutes.
- While the chicken rests, prepare your oil. In a dutch oven, cast iron skillet or any large heavy bottom pot, add 2 – 3 inches of oil. Heat oil until it gets to at least 350 degrees F. Oil should not be hotter than 385 degrees F. Add chicken one piece at a time. Do not crowd pan. Should not fry more than three pieces at a time. *Note* if oil doesn't cover chicken while frying, chicken should be flipped halfway through cooking process. Cook chicken until it reaches an internal temperature off 165 degrees F. Check oil temperature throughout process, if it reaches a temperature higher than 385 degrees F, do not add more chicken until oil cools.
- Remove chicken and let it rest on a wire until ready to serve.
No Comments