Fried Chicken

Despite the 250+ recipes I've posted and countless others I've made over my lifetime, I've always been afraid to make anything deep fried. It's not that I don't love fried chicken (anyone who doesn't is crazy), but I always thought the frying process was too risky and labor-intensive. Bon Appetit's February cover recipe convinced me otherwise and yielded some of the moistest chicken I've ever had - roasted, grilled, or otherwise. It did require some babysitting, but the resulting crispy-skinned feast was so worth the fifteen-twenty minutes of effort.


Fried Chicken:

• Combine 1 tbsp. kosher salt, 2 tsp. black pepper, 1 1/2 tsp. paprika, 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, 1/2 tsp. onion powder, and 3/4 tsp. cayenne pepper in a small bowl.
• Rub spice mixture over a 3 1/2 lb. chicken that has been cut into 10 pieces* and place in the fridge overnight.
• An hour before cooking, let chicken sit out at room temperature.
• Heat 4 c. peanut oil in a dutch oven** until it reaches 350°F on a deep-fry thermometer.
• Prepare your dredge by combining 1 c. buttermilk, 1 egg, and 1/2 c. water in one bowl. In another large dish, combine 3 c. flour, 1 tbsp. corn starch, salt, and pepper.
• Drop half the chicken into the buttermilk mixture, then coat in the flour mixture, then carefully place into the oil.
• Cook the chicken for 10-12 minutes, turning every 2-3 minutes, or until chicken is just cooked through.
• Transfer chicken to a wire baking rack and let the first batch rest while the second batch cooks.
• Divide chicken onto plates and serve.

Serves four - six
*Ask your butcher to do this for you. It's important to get the pieces as close to the same size as possible.
**The original recipe calls for a deep cast iron skillet, but I think the dutch oven is much easier to clean up.