
This picture from Fine Cooking magazine has been calling to me (and my sister) for almost a year now. Last weekend I decided to make it and it turned out amazingly well.

To start I ‘dry brined’ the chicken pieces in a mixture of salt and dried herbs for a few hours then dipped them in buttermilk, rolled them in a mixture of flours and herbs and let it all sit to make sure the coating stuck.
I cut up a whole chicken and used a pack of drumsticks as well figuring that left over fried chicken would probably be a pretty nice treat (standing in front of the fridge at 10 pm).
One key is getting the oil to 340F and keeping it there during the cooking. Hotter oil burns the coating before the chicken is cooked on the inside and cooler oil leads to soggy bird. To maintain the right temp I cooked the chicken in 3 batches for 12 minutes each.

A 3 litre jug of oil filled my 6 litre iron/enamel pot half way and that was just the right amount.

It turned out brilliantly! The coating was perfectly crisp and crunchy and the chicken was moist and flavoured all the way through.

We ate it with the first potato salad of the year and asparagus stir fried with a ginger-garlic sauce.

Lots if happy diners and more deep frying to come.

And, after almost 50 years of waiting, we now have insulated ceilings in the hallway, bathroom and bedrooms! Yay Mike!
