Real Fried Chicken | Ruth Reichl

Ruth Reichl in My Kitchen Year calls this the real fried chicken recipe. What makes it real, you may ask? To me, it’d have to offer the defining taste and texture of the fried chicken. You’ll recognize it when you taste it. It’s salty, juicy and crispy — the very essence of the classic Southern fried chicken.

Every step of the process: brining, the buttermilk, the seasoned flour and frying transforms the chicken into the so-called “real” deal. At the same time, I’ve learned a thing or two about how and why it works.

A quick brine, as Ruth Reichl explains, will draw out some of the liquid and concentrate the flavor of the meat. Furthermore, as chicken sits in a brine, the salt dissolves proteins in the meat’s muscle structure. As a result, the brine loosens the chicken meat and allowing it to retain more moisture for frying.

The crucial next step is to marinade the chicken pieces in a buttermilk bath overnight. Or for at least four hours. By all accounts, the buttermilk mixture, which is slightly acidic, tenderizes and adds lightness to the chicken.

Next, dip the buttermilk soaked chicken in the dry flour for coating. This ensures an extra-craggy crust with lots of nooks and crannies. Most noteworthy, as bits of marinade drip off and into the dry seasoned flour, they form little clumps that stick to the outside of the chicken. I have to say this is not my favorite step. Mixing the wet and sticky chicken to the dry flour is always messy. But you can’t argue that the clumps miraculously turn into the airy crunchy stuff we crave after frying.

When it comes to frying, one method I don’t use often, a cast iron pan is helpful. I shallow fry, rather than deep fry, the chicken in a small pan, a few pieces at a time. Don’t crowd the pan. Let the oil (peanut or vegetable oil) heat up to about 425°F. The temperature would drop once the chicken pieces are added. The key is to keep the temperature constant around 300°F. Watch the color of the chicken to turn golden brown rather than the clock, before transferring it to the oven.

Finally, my preference is to finish cooking the chicken in the oven, thereby ensuring it is properly and evenly cooked. Use an instant thermometer to check for doneness. I can then take a break until everyone is ready before I unveil the real fried chicken.

Print Recipe

Real Fried Chicken

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 fryer chicken, 3 1/2 to 4 Ib, cut into 8 pieces
• 1 tbsp kosher salt
• 3 cups buttermilk
• 2 onions, sliced
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup fine corn flour (optional)
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tbsp paprika (optional)
• 1 tsp garlic powder (optional)
• 1 tsp oregano (optional)
• 1 tsp baking powder (optional)
• fresh ground pepper
• 2 cups vegetable oil
• 8 tablespoons butter (I skipped it)

Instructions

1

Quick brine: Shower the chicken pieces with salt and put them in the refrigerator, uncovered for about AN HOUR. The quick brine will draw off some of the liquid and concentrate the flavor of the meat.

2

Tenderize with buttermilk bath: Rinse off all the salt and plunk the chicken into a bowl with the buttermilk and onions. Leave it to luxuriate in this bath in the refrigerator OVERNIGHT. The buttermilk will transform the flesh, making it almost silky. Meanwhile the onions will leave behind a hint of their own perfume.

3

Coat with Seasoned flour: Fill up paper bags (or plastic bags) with flour, cayenne pepper and a few grinds of pepper and some salt. Give it a good shake and then add one of the pieces of damp chicken. Shake well so it's covered with flour. Set the chicken on a rack or a plate. Repeat until all the chicken pieces are covered with flour. Allow the chicken to dry for about HALF AN HOUR.

4

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

5

Fry: Put oil or shortening in a large cast iron skillet with the butter. Allow it to get very hot (425°F). Add as much chicken as you can fit comfortably without crowding, turn down the heat to medium-high, and cook for 5 minutes. (The temperature should drop to 300°F; adjust the heat to maintain the temperature at 300°F for the duration of the cooking. Do not move the chicken or start checking for doneness until it has fried for at least 3 minutes, or you may knock off the coating.) Carefully flip the chicken pieces with tongs and cook until the second side is golden brown, about 3-4 minutes longer.

6

Bake to finish: Transfer the chicken to a clean wire rack set on a rimmed baking sheet and place in the oven. Cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast registers 150°F and the legs register 165°F, 10 to 15 minutes; remove the chicken pieces to a paper-towel-lined plate as they reach their final temperature.

7

Add salt and pepper. Serve hot.

Notes

Adapted from My Kitchen Year by Ruth Reichl