Fried Chicken

How two simple steps make this crispy and juicy

There’s nothing complicated about fried chicken: Use high-quality fat; Make sure the skin is crispy; Ensure the chicken remains moist.

The fat part is easy. I like to fry in beef tallow, duckfat, avocado oil, bacon fat or a combination of all of these. Obviously, the chosen fat will determine the final flavor. If you want a neutral flavor, go with the avocado oil. For a gamier flavor - Duck fat, and for a combo of gamey, rich and smokey go with bacon and tallow combined.

In terms of the chicken itself, you need to start with a quality product. Organic and free range is great, not just because of the lack of chemicals, but the happier the bird - the tastier the protein.

For the cut, let’s be honest with ourselves, we are fryign chicken, so why not go with the fattier, richer dark meat? Boneless thighs, drums, full legs - these will all ensure a great fried chicken product. This leads us to our final step. Finishing the product in the oven.

To ensure the chicken is cooked all the way through (especially if you are using dark meat) you need to finish the meat in the oven, otherwise, you are going to end up with a dry exterior,and in general, drier chicken.

These are the two simple steps: Finishing the meat in the oven and using a high-quality fat. If you opt for breast meat, you will still need to finish in the oven and be very particular about time. Bring the bird to 150F internally and allow it to come up to 160F post-cooking.

For the brine, I like to work with a simple buttermilk/pickle mixture. While the vinegar in the pickle mixture doesn’t break the bird down, I enjoy the pickle flavor with the hard finish of a pickle chip. I do let the meat sit in the salted buttermilk with the seasoning for a couple of hours, then add the pickle juice. Also, make sure you get a lot of the marinade packed into the chicken pieces as you dredge, this will allow for that crispy craggle we all love so much.

Ingredients:

2 quarts of beef tallow, avocado oil, duck fat, bacon fat or any combination of the above suggestions. You can use pure olive oil, but the flavor may taste somewhat fruity.

2 lbs of chicken (preferably dark meat but any cut will work)

For the dredge:

2 cups flour

2 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon freshly cracked pepper

2 tablespoons granulated garlic

1 tablespoon granulated onion

3 tablespoon paprika

1 teaspoon cayenne

1 tablespoon baking powder

For the brine:

1 cup buttermilk

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup pickle juice (add this after the chicken has been marinating for at least 2 hours.

Instructions:

Mix the ingredients for the buttermilk brine except the pickle juice. Allow the chicken to marinate for at least 2 hours. After 2 hours, mix in the pickle juice and allow to sit for at least another 30 minutes.

Bring your oil up to about 350F. If you don’t have a fryer thermometer, drip a touch of the batter or a veggie into the oil and it should begin to fry rapidly. Leave enough space between the oil and the top of the pot to allow for the oil level to increase as you add the product.

Pull your chicken from the brine and place it in the flour.

IMPORTANT: Drizzle some of the marinade over the chicken/flour mix so you can create a thicker crust on the chicken. It should almost look shaggy like an Australian Labradoodle. Slowly submerge the chicken into the oil and cook until golden brown. Then transfer onto a sheet pan and into a 350F oven. Bring the temp up to 155F for dark meat and 150F for white meat.

At this point, you have perfectly fried chicken.