Don’t be afraid of fried chicken! This recipe for Classic Fried Chicken is a little labor-intensive, but it tastes so very yummy!
Classic Fried Chicken
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I know, I know. Who has time to make fried chicken? Well… I won’t lie and tell you this is fast to make. It’s not. It takes a little bit of prep work, some time to marinate in the refrigerator (although you’re not actually doing anything then), and then it actually has to fry. And unless you have a deep fryer at home (um, we do… but I didn’t use it for this recipe), you’ll need to be standing at the stove while the chicken is frying. So… get your partner to keep an eye on the kids for a while, and fry this chicken! Trust me, it’s worth it.
One of the big reasons I didn’t want to ever make fried chicken is because it makes such a mess. Imagine all that hot oil splattering everywhere while the chicken is cooking… for 12-15 minutes… and a couple of batches. Are you picturing little oil splatters all over your kitchen? It doesn’t have to be like that! I used a splatter shield, and there was virtually no oil splatter to clean up! Just rest the shield on top of the pan once the chicken is in, and you’ve got a barrier against the messy oil.
I started with a whole chicken, and cut it up myself. (John and I did a video here that will walk you through cutting one up yourself.) That’s cheaper than buying a chicken already cut up. Before you’re ready to fry the chicken, you need to coat it. First it gets coated in a mixture of seasonings and flour, then dipped in buttermilk, and then coated in the seasoning mixture again. Large, shallow trays are the best for this dipping (although, beware, you’re probably going to still make a bit of a mess). I love these coating trays from The Pampered Chef.
I left the skin on after I cut the chicken up. That’s the best part of fried chicken! If you want to remove the skin first, by all means please do so. You will still get the crispy crust from the flour and buttermilk, there just might not be quite as much of it.
You’ll need a heavy-bottomed pan to fry in. Something like this one. You want a pan that is at least 12 inches across. You need to give the chicken plenty of room to cook. If you crowd the pan and put the chicken too close together, it will steam instead of fry, and then you’ll have a soggy crust. Nobody likes a soggy crust on fried chicken!
You also should use a frying thermometer. The oil needs to be good and hot before you start cooking your chicken. Pour about 1.5 inches of oil into the pan, and then turn on the heat to medium or medium-high. Heat the oil to 350 degrees before you add the chicken. Once the oil is hot enough, put a few pieces of chicken in the oil. It will splatter, so watch out! Adding the cold chicken to the hot oil will make the oil temperature drop, so adjust your heat setting on your burner. You want to keep the oil temperature around 325 degrees F while the chicken is cooking.
I used canola oil to fry this chicken. You could also use vegetable oil. Check out this article for more information about how to choose your oil.
The chicken should cook for 12-15 minutes; turn it over once during cooking. Check to see if it is done with a meat thermometer, don’t rely on the color of the chicken or the juices. You’re going for an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
I know it sounds like a lot of work – but trust me you guys! It’s worth the splurge every once in a while. This chicken is to die for!
Do you need some supplies for your kitchen to make this? I’ve got everything you need collected in this list on Amazon.
Don’t want to go to quite all that effort? This Oven-Fried Chicken tastes almost as good as the real thing, and is way less work!
Serve this fried chicken with Country Green Beans and these Creamy Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes for a classic farm-style weekend meal!
What’s the meal your family loves to eat, but you rarely cook because it takes too long?
Enjoy!
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Printable Recipe Card for Classic Fried Chicken
Classic Fried Chicken
Ingredients
- 3-3/4 cups buttermilk divided
- 1/3 cup kosher salt
- 2 Tablespoons sugar
- 2.5-3 pounds chicken pieces - 2 breast halves 2 thighs, 2 drumsticks, 2 wings (get instructions to cut up a whole chicken here)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- Canola oil
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine 3 cups of the buttermilk, the kosher salt, and sugar. Stir until the salt and sugar are mostly dissolved.
- Cut chicken breasts in half, so they are about the size of the chicken thighs (you'll have 4 pieces of chicken breast now).
- Place the chicken pieces in a large Ziploc bag. Pour the buttermilk mixture over the chicken in the bag. Seal the bag, and squeeze out as much air as possible. Massage the liquid in the bag, to cover as much of the chicken as possible.
- Place the bag of chicken in another bowl (to stop spills), and refrigerate for 2-4 hours.
- Remove chicken from bag and pat dry with paper towels. Discard bag and buttermilk mixture.
- In a large, heavy-bottomed pan, heat 1-1/2 inches of vegetable or canola oil to 350 degrees F. While the oil is heating, prep the chicken.
- In a shallow bowl, combine flour, salt, and pepper. (I use these.)
- Put 3/4 cup buttermilk in another shallow bowl.
- Working with one piece of chicken at a time, coat the chicken in the flour mixture, dip in the buttermilk, and then coat with flour again. Set coated chicken aside until all pieces are done.
- When the oil is 350 degrees F, begin frying chicken. Work in small batches - do not crowd the pan.
- Place 2-4 pieces of chicken in the hot oil (depending on the size of your pan). The oil temperature will drop, so adjust your heat to maintain the temperature at 325 degrees F.
- Fry chicken for 12-15 minutes, turning once during cooking. The chicken is done when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F (with a meat thermometer).
- Drain chicken on a wire rack over paper towels. Keep chicken warm in an oven preheated to 300 degrees F.
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