Recipe

Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Photo by lastnightsdinner

  • This recipe was entered in the contest for Your Best Fried Chicken
  • Chef

    adashofbitters's Notes: I love fried chicken, and I've tried all sorts of things over the years to make perfectly fried poultry--chicken that's crunchy and crisp outside, tender and moist inside, and thoroughly cooked...

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Serves 4

Brining and boiling:

2 cups low-fat buttermilk Ask the
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2 tablespoons kosher salt Ask the
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2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning Ask the
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1 teaspoon Tabasco red pepper sauce Ask the
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3 pounds chicken parts (I used drumsticks, thighs, and wings) Ask the
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  1. Mix buttermilk, salt, Old Bay, and Tabasco in a lidded glass container or gallon-sized zip-top bag. Add chicken and cover to coat. Refrigerate at least three hours, but preferably overnight.

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  2. Using tongs, remove chicken from buttermilk brine to a large saucepan or medium stock pot. Pour in buttermilk brine and add enough water to cover. Bring buttermilk to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 20 minutes. Remove chicken from buttermilk and place on a rack to cool.

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  1. Put enough fat or oil in a Dutch oven to thoroughly cover the chicken pieces. Heat over medium-high heat to 350ºF.

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  2. In a gallon-sized zip-top bag, combine flour, Old Bay, salt, and black pepper. Add chicken pieces, one or two at a time, and coat. Knock excess coating back into the bag before removing pieces to a plate.

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  3. Add pieces one at a time to boiling oil. To avoid overcrowding the Dutch oven, you may have to work in batches. The temperature of the oil will drop when you add the chicken, so turn the heat up until the temperature rises again to 350ºF.

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  4. Cook until chicken pieces are browned, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from oil and drain on a rack placed over a baking sheet. Sprinkle sea salt over each piece.

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  5. Repeat for remaining batches. Serve hot, cold, or at room temperature.

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Soup Reply

you fucking badass this is awesome. old bay ftw

Reply

This sounds phenomenal. I like that the chicken gets cooked BEFORE frying, so it doesn't dry out or absorb too much oil and get greasy. I'll probably be trying this out this weekend -- Great method!

Reply

Is brining a fancy word for marinating chicken in buttermilk??

Me Reply

There are at least four other recipes here in which the chicken is brined before it's fried, and I'm not the only one that uses buttermilk, so I don't understand your question.

Brining is a nonfancy word that cooks and chefs have used for years. It's a solution of salt and liquid and often spices or herbs. In this case, I used buttermilk as the liquid. What makes this a brine rather than a marinade is the salt. The techniques are similar but brines are saltier.

Rev_upper_hand Reply

Oh big fat wow!! That sounds divine...Duck fat rocks!!

Me Reply

Thank you!

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