American · Main · Medium
Fried Chicken
Crispy, golden, and juicy all the way through. This is the classic Southern fried chicken that turns a regular dinner into an event.
The whole recipe in 60 seconds
Fried Chicken, in 5 ideas
- Brining in buttermilk is the whole secret: the acid tenderizes the meat and helps the crust cling.
- Double dredge (buttermilk, flour, buttermilk, flour) for an extra craggy crust.
- Keep the oil at 350F. Too cool and the chicken goes greasy; too hot and the crust burns before the inside cooks.
- A wire rack keeps the bottom crust crisp while resting.
- Leftover fried chicken is excellent cold the next day, picnic style.
What you need
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken (about 4 lbs), cut into 8 pieces
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 4 cups vegetable oil, for frying
How to make it
Directions
- Soak the chicken pieces in buttermilk for at least 2 hours, or overnight in the fridge for the juiciest result.
- Mix the flour with paprika, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, cayenne, and onion powder in a large bowl.
- Lift each piece from the buttermilk, let the excess drip off, then dredge firmly in the seasoned flour. Press the coating on so it sticks.
- Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet or Dutch oven to 350F. The oil should be about 2 inches deep.
- Fry the chicken in batches, skin side down first, for 12 to 15 minutes per side until deep golden and the internal temp hits 165F.
- Drain on a wire rack set over a sheet pan (not paper towels, which steam the crust soft). Rest 5 minutes before serving.
Money saver. Buy whole chickens and cut them up yourself. It costs about half as much per pound as pre-cut pieces, and you get the back for stock.