Buttermilk Fried Chicken – Southern, Fried, but Not Southern Fried
Not being from the south, I had no idea that this recipe I've been calling southern fried chicken for a long time, was not really southern fried chicken.
It was southern, and it was fried, but the addition of the buttermilk marinade apparently disqualified it from being a true southern fried chicken recipe.
According to my sources deep within the southern fried chicken subculture, real southern fried chicken consists of chicken parts, dredged in seasoned flour, and fried in hot oil until crisp and cooked.
That's it. If any additional steps or ingredients are added, and you still call it southern fried chicken, someone may drop a, "Well, bless your heart" on you. Sounds nice, right? It's not, ask a southerner.
I'll have to try that pure version one day, but I love the tangy tenderization that the buttermilk and associated bacteria provide, so I don't see any reason to change my approach.
Yes, this is a messy project, but there are perks to having a Dutch oven full of oil around for a few days. You already saw the Paczki we made, and you will see a French fry demo soon, so stay tuned.
I decided to show a couple minutes of me cutting up the whole chicken into the classic eight-piece meal. I did speed it up to make it somewhat bearable, so if you need to, go back and watch it a few times to see the nuances of the dissection. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
3 1/2 pound chicken, cut in 8 pieces
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 tsp ground dried herbs (oregano, thyme, rosemary, sage)
2 cups buttermilk
for the seasoned flour:
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
2 1/2 quarts peanut oil for frying
36 comments:
Hey John.
This recipe looks fantastic, but I just have one teensy problem: I'm allergic to peanuts. Would you be able to recommend a subsitute oil for frying? I've run into this problem a few times, because apparently peanut oil's high smoking point makes it fantastic to fry anything imaginable. Is there an oil out there for me?
Keep up the great work! Rest assured I have told all my friends about foodwishes.com. Repeatedly.
:: ira
Part of me wished that this was going to be one of your amazing baked "fried" dishes. Deed fried a small amount of fish with beer batter over the weekend and still managed to make a bit of a mess of the kitchen. Guess theres no way around it for the good stuff.
LOL! Fire trucks! how was your birthday? hope you had a good one
Hey Chef John,
I'm across the Atlantic where we don't seem to like Buttermilk very much. I was just wondering if you knew an easy way to make it? Hope you had a good birthday and thanks for the site!
Does going through the breast bone put a lot of wear and tear on a knife? I don't have a cleaver, so I'd be doing it chef's knife.
Chef John! I object! The wingtips are certainly not useless. Toss them in a baggie and stash them in the freezer along with other chickeney bits that would otherwise go in the trash (like the carcass from a roasted chicken) Then you can use it all to make stock.
Happy Birthday!!!!!
Ira- I know alton brown uses canola oil to fry, so try that.
olli- you can use some plain yogurt thinned with milk, would be very similar.
CG- as long as the knife is sharp no prob, use your steel before and after.
Alx- i just said they were useless to fry, of course they can be saved for stock with the backbone. should have mentioned.
Everyone else, thanks!
OOooh cant wait for french fries! do you have a recipe for maybe falafel? just a fried food i been daydreaming about recently.
sorry, no falafel recipes
K chickens in the fridge marinadings carcass on the stove for gravy twice baked potatos in oven an I just making the pazkis for desert,Um what we having tommorow John :) is it a supprise :)
Thanks for clearing that up. I had no idea. I do love chicken that's had a bath in buttermilk brine.
Looks great, however, as a born and raised southerner...I've always used buttermilk, as that is how my grandmother taught me, and she was also born in the deep south of Georgia. I'm sure you will hear both sides of this, some agreeing and some not, but I will tell you that the buttermilk bath is quite common. Now not using a cast iron skillet and Crisco is another story :)
As another "born and raised southerner", from a long line of "born and raised southerners", I am not sure whether I should be amused or insulted by some of your remarks.
What I CAN tell you is that my Texas relatives have been frying chicken (after soaking in buttermilk) in lard in a cast iron Dutch oven GENERATIONS before YOU were born.
And my family (several of which can trace their ancestry to Plimoth Plantation), always seemed to enjoy the chicken.
you should be amused and insulted.
actually you'll notice I didn't take a stand either way, I said "apparently" the real deal is just floured. Besides, what do they know about cooking in Texas?
Thank you for the clarification.
But to answer your question, "what do they know about cooking in Texas", the Texans have forgotten more about cooking than the fruits and nuts in California will ever understand ;)
Okay now my husband is going to be mad because I am sending him out for some buttermilk and peanut oil. I. Must. Have. Fried. Chicken. Chef John's fault!
spoken like a true Texan! lol @ fruits and nuts
Sheliza, he's lucky to have you...
Need french men to start selling buttermilk. I sometimes use a mix of milk and lemon, but i fear the lemon will vary, especially if i add to much lemon.
And well tbh, I have seen a lot of peope saying they are southerners saying the use buttermilk and bunch who say they dont. And it shouldn't matter I think, every home has their own traditional recipe and the best is whichever you like more.
BTW, I heard that peanut oil is peanut allergic tollerant if it's well refined (Alton Brown said it I think). But then again, use canolla oil just in case.
You can't get more southern than Alabama, born and raised.... And yes, I do say, "Bless your heart," when I want to express my sympathy to someone. This is exactly how I make my chicken, my mother, my grandmother and great grandmother too. We do use the cast iron skillet instead of the dutch oven. This will really give it away but I remember my grandmother catching the chicken in the yard and my grandfather preparing it for dinner. This could give a little girl nightmares. I never ate it when I was little for that reason. Love your recipes. Thanks Chef John.
This looks amazing - I am literally drooling!
no fair no fair..!!! everytime i try making fried chicken the batter came out soggy and the thighs are always red and slightly bloody inside :( eventhough i've fried it for 1/2 hour. Furthermore the fried chickens i made look soo charred :(
sounds like the oil isn't hot enough, but I don't know. Always works for me.
For iliea: I was just making falafel today and it turned out good, much better than what I had at a food court the other day.
1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked overnight and rinsed (much better than canned, IMO)
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
1 handful cilantro (I think it's a combo of cilantro and parsley, but didn't have the latter)
1 egg
1 1/2 tbsp flour
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1-2 pinch fennel seed (optional)
salt, pepper, cayenne to taste (used paprika in lieu of cayenne)
Boil chickpeas for 3-5 minutes on high, simmer on low for about half an hour, drain thoroughly. Shred them and the onion/garlic in a food processor.
You can shred the parsley and cilantro with the above, which will make the paste green, but I just chopped them and mixed it at the end.
Put everything in a mixing bowl, add the spices, flour, and beaten egg, mix.
Form into slightly flattened golf balls, or burger patties. Fry or deep-fry until golden brown. I suppose you could coat them in breading but there's no need.
...eee. I was hoping this would be a short comment. If I had a tripod I'd have filmed my attempt and cut out all this text.
Hey chief Jon. How about using bread crumbs instead of flour?
Hey chief John. How about using bread crumbs instead of flour?
breadcrumbs? never!
hey cheif me being a guy only 18 living on my own i dont have a dutch oven can i use a deap fryer
Of course, deep fryer is even better
I have run out of peanut oil? Can I mix with canola oil?? Making the chicken now.. :)
one more question how come some people add egg to this sort of recipe when after they marinate in buttermilk ?
yes on the canola, and eggs? I have no idea, they're crazy
Chef John.....chicken looks delicious and am anxious to try the recipe myself. Only difference is I have a 10lb bag of assorted chicken parts and was wondering how can I adjust your recipe to fit? As simple as x3 on everything??
pretty much except the oil is the same, you just have to fry in batches.
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