Free recipe
Southern Fried Chicken
Built around pieces bone-in chicken and buttermilk -- the method starts by soaking the chicken in the buttermilk with 1 teaspoon salt at least 2 hours.
Buttermilk-brined and shatter-crisp, with a craggy golden crust worth the splatter. Here it's built on pieces bone-in chicken, buttermilk and flour -- a medium, American comfort recipe that starts by soaking the chicken in the buttermilk with 1 teaspoon salt at least 2 hours, and is ready in roughly 60 minutes.
Worth the 60 minutes -- this is a weekend project that pays off.
A few technique steps to focus on, but nothing that needs special equipment.
Built around pieces bone-in chicken, so the flavor comes from real ingredients, not a spice packet.
Ingredients
- 8 pieces bone-in chicken
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
- Oil for frying, salt
Nutrition (estimated, per serving)
Calculated from this recipe's own ingredient list; treat as an estimate, not a lab measurement.
Method
Soak the chicken in the buttermilk with 1 teaspoon salt at least 2 hours, or overnight - this is the secret to juicy, tender meat.
Mix the flour with the paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper, and 1 tablespoon salt.
Lift each piece from the buttermilk, let it drip, then coat thoroughly in the seasoned flour, pressing so it sticks. Rest on a rack 10 minutes.
Pour 1.5 inches of oil into a heavy pot and heat to 325F/165C.
Fry in batches (do not crowd) 12-15 minutes, turning, until deep golden and 165F/74C inside. Keep the oil steady around 325F.
Drain on a rack rather than paper (paper steams the crust).
Season with a little more salt and rest 5 minutes before serving.
The step worth not rushing: Lift each piece from the buttermilk, let it drip, then coat thoroughly in the seasoned flour, pressing so it sticks. Rest on a rack 10 minutes.
