Perfect Chicken Food

PERFECT SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Soak chicken in water and salt at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.
• Mix buttermilk, eggs and Season All and dip chicken pieces in this mixture.
• Combine 1 cup flour, 2 tbsp corn meal, 2 tsp dried oregano, and 2 tsp Season All in a bag.
• Drop two pieces of dipped chicken in the bag at one time.
• Shake to coat.
• Place on wire rack to rest.
• (I place wax paper under the rack to catch any flour that falls off.) Heat a shallow layer of oil or shortening to 360 F in a jumbo chicken skillet (cast iron is great for this job) or an electric skillet.
• Place the chicken in the pan, trying not to crowd the pieces.
• Cover for the first five minutes.
• Check the chicken.
• When golden brown, turn.
• Cover for the next five minutes.
• Remove cover and cook uncovered, turning occasionally, as needed for a total of an additional 20 minutes or until cooked through.
• Watch carefully, and don't allow it to get too dark.
• If it's frying too fast, reduce heat slightly.
• NOTE- the key is to cover in the beginning to start the cooking process inside the chicken, but to uncover during the last part of the cooking time to get the outside nice and crispy and golden brown.

PERFECT CRISPY FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Place chicken drumsticks and thighs in a bowl and pour enough buttermilk over chicken to cover. Cover and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours.
• Combine flour, cornmeal, granulated onion, granulated garlic, thyme, salt, paprika, monosodium glutamate, baking powder, and cayenne pepper in a large, wide bowl.
• Remove chicken from buttermilk and shake off excess. Discard buttermilk. Pat chicken dry with paper towels.
• Dip chicken into egg whites and press into flour mixture. Allow coated chicken to rest on a wire rack for 20 to 30 minutes.
• Fill a cast-iron skillet or deep fryer with vegetable oil about 1/3 full. Heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
• Fry chicken in hot oil in batches until golden brown and no longer pink in the center, 8 to 10 minutes per side. Thighs may take longer to fry than drumsticks. Transfer fried chicken to a wire rack or a paper towel-lined tray to drain. Keep chicken warm in preheated oven while frying remaining pieces.

PERFECT CHICKEN

Steps:

• Pour the chicken broth into a saucepan with the onion and garlic; bring to a boil and cook at a boil until the liquid reduces by half, about 10 minutes. Pour in the white wine, return to a boil, and reduce the liquid by half again, about 10 minutes. Stir in mushrooms, rosemary, and sage; simmer until the mushrooms are tender and have given up their juice, about 15 more minutes. Stir in cream, butter, lemon, and capers; reduce heat and simmer the sauce until thickened, about 10 minutes (45 minutes in all).
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Place the cornstarch into a shallow bowl and press the chicken thighs into the cornstarch on all sides until thoroughly coated. Shake off excess cornstarch. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; pan-fry the chicken thighs until they develop a golden brown crust, about 8 minutes per side. Place the chicken thighs into a 9x9-inch baking dish and pour the sauce over the chicken.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the sauce is bubbling and the chicken is no longer pink in the center, about 15 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of a chicken thigh should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).

PERFECT ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Let chicken and 1 tablespoon butter stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Remove and discard the plastic pop-up timer from chicken if there is one. Remove the giblets and excess fat from the chicken cavity. Rinse chicken inside and out under cold running water. Dry chicken thoroughly with paper towels. Tuck the wing tips under the body. Sprinkle the cavity of the chicken liberally with salt and pepper, and set aside.
• In the center of a heavy-duty roasting pan, place onion slices in two rows, touching. Place the palm of your hand on top of lemon and, pressing down, roll lemon back and forth several times. This softens the lemon and allows the juice to flow more freely. Pierce entire surface of lemon with a fork. Using the side of a large knife, gently press on garlic cloves to open slightly. Insert garlic cloves, thyme sprigs, and lemon into cavity. Place chicken in pan, on onion slices. Cut about 18 inches of kitchen twine, bring chicken legs forward, cross them, and tie together.
• Spread the softened butter over entire surface of chicken, and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Place in the oven, and roast until skin is deep golden brown and crisp and the juices run clear when pierced, about 1 1/2 hours. When chicken seems done, insert an instant-read thermometer into the breast, then the thigh. The breast temperature should read 180 degrees and the thigh 190 degrees.
• Remove chicken from oven, and transfer to a cutting board with a well. Let chicken stand 10 to 15 minutes so the juices settle. Meanwhile, pour the pan drippings into a shallow bowl or fat separator, and leave onions in the pan. Leave any brown baked-on bits in the bottom of the roasting pan, and remove and discard any blackened bits. Using a large spoon or fat separator, skim off and discard as much fat as possible. Pour the remaining drippings and the juices that have collected under the resting chicken back into the roasting pan. Place on the stove over medium-high heat to cook, about 1 minute. Add chicken stock, raise heat to high, and, using a wooden spoon, stir up and combine the brown bits with the stock until the liquid is reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Strain the gravy into a small bowl, pressing on onions to extract any liquid. Discard onions, and stir in the remaining tablespoon of cold butter until melted and incorporated. Untie the legs, and remove and discard garlic, thyme, and lemon. Carve, and serve gravy on the side.

PERFECT FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Put buttermilk, 1/4 cup salt, and the hot sauce (if desired) in a large, airtight container. Add chicken pieces; turn to coat. Cover; refrigerate 2 hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Put flour, remaining 5 teaspoons salt, pepper, cayenne, and baking powder in a large resealable plastic bag. Shake vigorously.
• One at a time, place chicken pieces in bag, and shake to coat. Remove from bag, and shake off any excess. Transfer coated pieces to a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Let stand 30 minutes.
• Heat shortening (and bacon drippings, if desired) in two 10-inch cast-iron skillets over medium-low heat until it registers 375 degrees on a deep-fry thermometer. (Alternatively, use one skillet and half the shortening and drippings, and cook in batches.) Using tongs, place thighs and drumsticks in skillets. Fry until undersides are dark golden, 10 to 14 minutes. Turn pieces over; cook until dark golden all over and an instantread thermometer inserted into the thigh registers 170 degrees, another 10 to 14 minutes.
• Transfer to a wire rack (clean the rack that held raw pieces before reusing it) set over a baking sheet. Transfer rack and sheet to oven to keep chicken warm.
• Remove any bits of coating left in skillets with a slotted spoon; discard. Repeat process to fry breasts and wings, 10 to 14 minutes per side (cook until an instantread thermometer inserted into the breast registers 170 degrees).

PERFECT CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

Steps:

• Heat 2tbsp oil in a large skillet. Saute onions, garlic, green chilles, and mushrooms for 4-5 minutes on medium-high heat.
• Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add chicken and can of enchilada sauce. Let simmer for 5-10 minutes. Again, the consistency of the dish depends on how long you let the sauce thicken/evaporate.
• Mix in all of the spices (more or less, depending on your taste). Blend in the sour cream and the cream of chicken until fully mixed. Remove from heat.
• Spoon mixture evenly into tortillas and roll them up. Place them seam-side down in an oil-coated 13x9-inch pan. Pour leftover mixture evenly over the enchiladas.
• Mix the milk and 4-cheese blend in a small bowl. Pour evenly over the enchiladas and sprinkle the cheddar cheese over it.
• Bake for 350°F for 35-45 minutes.

PERFECT BAKED CHICKEN BREASTS

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

PERFECT ROAST CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pin feathers and pat the outside dry. Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the bunch of thyme, both halves of lemon, and all the garlic. Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle again with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Place the onions, carrots, and fennel in a roasting pan. Toss with salt, pepper, 20 sprigs of thyme, and olive oil. Spread around the bottom of the roasting pan and place the chicken on top.
• Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh. Remove the chicken and vegetables to a platter and cover with aluminum foil for about 20 minutes. Slice the chicken onto a platter and serve it with the vegetables.

ABSOLUTELY PERFECT CHICKEN MARINADE

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients into a gallon sized bag. Add chicken and marinate for at least 1 hour or overnight. Remove chicken from marinade and discard.