|
Been practising and finally got the Good Eats Southern Fried Chicken recipe right last night (and didn't fry my index finger this time either!).
Take four breasts of chicken (yes, four. Three is perfect for two people, but they don't sell them in threes, and they don't come in threes naturally either, except on mars. Good Eats used a whole chicken, but I'm a wuss and don't butcher chickens), and trim off any huge amounts of fat, trim the little bloody boney bit off if it's still attached, then cut in two equal halves (not lengthways) and put in a bowl and cover with buttermilk. Full-fat buttermilk. Leave for at least an hour on the counter or preferably overnight in the fridge.
Take out, sprinkle liberally with seasoning (a tablespoon of salt, two each of garlic powder, paprika and a teaspoon or two of cayanne pepper; or whatever you think you'd like yourself. The paprika and salt are pretty essential though. If I remember right, KFC's seasoning is just salt. 12 herbs and spices my rear end). Throw into a tupperware box which has a cup or two of ordinary flour in it, put on the lid, shake well to coat. (Don't season the flour - you want the flour over the seasoning to stop it burning in the pan). Using tongs, take out the chicken piece, shake off all the excess, then leave to sit for two or three minutes on a paper towel beside the cooker. Do that for all the chicken pieces.
Now take a 12" frying pan and half a packet of shortening (crisp'n'dry or frytex or whatever). Put one on the heat and put the other in it. If you get a mess, you got it the wrong way round. Wait for the shortening to liquify (it should give you between half and one centimetre of oil in the pan) and heat to the point where it *just* starts to smoke a little (or if you have a thermometer, take it to 180C or 350F). Put the chicken in with the tongs. It should start bubbling immediately. If not, it's not hot enough, take the chicken out quickly and wait a bit.
Leave the chicken bubbling for six minutes. Don't move it, except to ensure no piece is touching another piece. After six minutes, lift a piece to see if the colour is okay on the bottom. You want golden brown heading for brown. One patch will be darker than the rest as that's where it's sitting on the pan. If happy with the colour, turn. If not, wait a bit and repeat. Ten minutes of frying though, gets you to blackened chicken, Irish style (as opposed to cajun style which is lovely). Leave on the other side for a minute or so less, and check the colour again. When happy, move to a rack - not a paper towel. Leave the towel under the rack. If you don't have a rack, use the rack from the oven. Don't let the chicken sit in its own grease as it cools. You have to let it sit for about four or five minutes. It'll stay hot for ages, so don't worry about that. Plus it tastes great at room temperature anyway, that's why people take it for picnics.
Don't leave it in the oven, especially not a gas oven.
'Tis only fan-bloody-tastic.
|