Perfect Fried Chicken Food

BEST-EVER FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a shallow bowl, mix the first 6 ingredients. In a separate shallow bowl, whisk egg, milk and lemon juice until blended. Dip chicken in flour mixture to coat all sides; shake off excess. Dip in egg mixture, then again in flour mixture., In an electric skillet or deep fryer, heat oil to 375°. Fry chicken, a few pieces at a time, 6-10 minutes on each side or until skin is golden brown and juices run clear. Drain on paper towels.

CRISPY FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Take your cut up chicken pieces and skin them if you prefer. Put the flour in a large plastic bag (let the amount of chicken you are cooking dictate the amount of flour you use). Season the flour with paprika, salt and pepper to taste (paprika helps to brown the chicken).
• Dip chicken pieces in buttermilk then, a few at a time, put them in the bag with the flour, seal the bag and shake to coat well. Place the coated chicken on a cookie sheet or tray, and cover with a clean dish towel or waxed paper. LET SIT UNTIL THE FLOUR IS OF A PASTE-LIKE CONSISTENCY. THIS IS CRUCIAL!
• Fill a large skillet (cast iron is best) about 1/3 to 1/2 full with vegetable oil. Heat until VERY hot. Put in as many chicken pieces as the skillet can hold. Brown the chicken in HOT oil on both sides. When browned, reduce heat and cover skillet; let cook for 30 minutes (the chicken will be cooked through but not crispy). Remove cover, raise heat again and continue to fry until crispy.
• Drain the fried chicken on paper towels. Depending on how much chicken you have, you may have to fry in a few shifts. Keep the finished chicken in a slightly warm oven while preparing the rest.

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.

FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Thoroughly rinse the chicken pieces, then place them in a bowl and cover with 4 cups of the buttermilk. Soak in the fridge overnight or up to 24 hours.
• When you're ready to fry the chicken, remove the bowl from the fridge and let it sit on the counter for 30 minutes, just to take the chill off.
• In the meantime, preheat the oven to 360 degrees F and mix up the breading. Place the flour, seasoned salt, paprika, black pepper, thyme and cayenne (plus extra cayenne if you like heat) in a very large bowl. Stir together well.
• In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/4 cup buttermilk and the milk. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and gradually mix with a fork until there are little lumps throughout; these will adhere to the chicken and make for a crispier breading. If necessary, add a little more flour or milk to make the breading slightly lumpy.
• Heat 1 1/2 to 2 inches of oil in a deep skillet over medium-high heat until a deep-fry thermometer reaches 365 degrees F. Lower the heat slightly, if necessary, to keep the oil from getting hotter.
• Working in batches, thoroughly coat each chicken piece with breading, pressing extra breading onto the chicken if necessary. Place the breaded pieces on a plate.
• Add the breaded chicken to the oil, 3 or 4 pieces at a time; make sure they don't stick together. Cover the pan and fry for 5 to 7 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure the chicken isn't getting too brown. Turn the pieces over, cover again, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes more. All the while, monitor the temperature of the oil to make sure the chicken doesn't burn.
• Transfer the fried chicken to a baking sheet and continue frying the rest of the chicken. When all the chicken has been fried, remove the wings and legs to a plate and keep covered. (These should be cooked all the way through by now, but always check if any pink juice or meat is visible. If so, return to the hot oil for another minute or so, until fully cooked.) Leave the thighs and breasts on the baking sheet.
• Bake the thighs and breasts for 15 minutes to finish cooking. (Sometimes I'll cut into the thicker part of one of the larger pieces just to make sure the chicken is cooked through. If any pink juice or meat is visible, the chicken needs to continue cooking in the oven.)

FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Cut the whole chickens into 4 breasts, 4 thighs, 4 legs and 4 wings and set aside.
• Preheat your oil, in either a heavy pan on the stove or a deep-fryer, to 325 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and cayenne pepper until thoroughly mixed. Set aside.
• Pour the buttermilk into another bowl large enough for the chicken to be immersed in the buttermilk.
• Prepare your dredging station. Place your chicken in a bowl. Next to that, your bowl of buttermilk, and next to that, your dry mixture.
• Take your breasts, lightly dust them with your flour mixture, then dip them in the buttermilk until they are coated, and then place them in the flour mixture.
• Take the breasts that are in the flour mixture and aggressively push the flour mixture into the wet chicken. Make sure that the chicken in very thoroughly coated, or you will not achieve the crust and crunch you are looking for. Gently place the breasts in your hot oil.
• Next, repeat the dredging steps with your other pieces of chicken in this order: thigh, leg then wing.
• When you place the last wing into the fryer, you should have 16 pieces of chicken in the oil. Set a timer for 15 minutes.
• After 15 minutes, take a probe thermometer and check the temperature of a breast. If it reads 180 degrees F, all of your chicken is done. (Keep in mind that it will continue to cook after it has been removed from the fryer.)
• Remove the chicken from the oil and let it drain for 5 minutes. Let cool for an additional 10 minutes before serving.

CRISPY FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together buttermilk, hot sauce (optional, for added flavor), salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl. Add in chicken pieces. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate 4 hours.
• When ready to cook, pour the vegetable oil in a skillet until it is about 3/4 inch deep. Heat to 350 degrees.
• Prepare the breading by combining the flour, cornstarch, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, basil, white pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, and salt in a gallon sized resealable plastic bag or shallow dish. Mix it thoroughly.
• Working one at a time, remove chicken pieces from buttermilk mixture. Shake it gently to remove the excess. Place it in the breading mix and coat thoroughly. Tap off the excess.
• Place the breaded chicken into the 350 degree oil. Fry 3 or 4 pieces at a time. The chicken will drop the temperature of the oil so keep it as close to 350 degrees as possible. Fry each piece for 14 minutes, turning each piece about half way through, until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
• Remove from the oil and place on paper towels. Let them rest for at least 10 minutes before serving.

PERFECT FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Rinse the chicken pieces and dry thoroughly with the paper towels.
• Pour milk (Undiluted) into a large pie plate. Dip chicken into milk.
• In a clean brown paper bag, combine flour, cornflake crumbs, salt, pepper and paprika, if using. Then shake chicken, a few pieces at a time, in crumb mixture in the bag, coating well.
• Pour peanut oil, or whichever oil you prefer. (I use peanut oil because it has a greater smoking point than other oils).into pan at about 1/2-inch deep, may need more.
• Heat the oil slowly.
• Brown the chicken lightly, turning with tongs.
• Cover; reduce heat; cook 40 to 45 minutes, turning occasionally to ensure even browning.
• Remove cover; cook 5 minutes longer to crisp the crust.

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.