Fried Chicken

Nearly everyone has their favorite Fried Chicken recipe.  This one has been very good to me for quite some time.  It’s flavorful and the coating comes out nice and crisp. 

If time permits, I soak my chicken in a brine or in buttermilk for a few hours.  But with this recipe, it’s not necessarily needed.

Ingredients

6 cups vegetable oil for frying 

2/3 cup all purpose flour

1 tablespoon salt

2 tablespoons ground white pepper

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons paprika

3 eggs

1 frying chicken, cut up

Directions

Heat oil over medium heat in a deep cast iron skillet. Combine the flour, salt, peppers, and paprika in a bowl.

In another bowl, break eggs and beat until well blended.

Check temperature of oil by dropping a pinch of flour mixture in pan. If the oil bubbles rapidly around the flour, it will be the right temperature.

Dip each piece of chicken into eggs; then coat generously with the flour mixture. Let rest on a cookie rack for 30 minutes to let the coating adhere nicely to the chicken. Drop each piece into the hot oil and fry for 15 to 25 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown and cooked through.

Drain chicken on paper towels and serve warm.

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French Fries-2 Ways

I’m a french fry-a-holic.  I don’t eat them nearly as much as I’d like, but I do love me a good fry.  I’m sure you’re interested, so I’ll go ahead and fill you in on the type of fry I like.  Thin cut, and crispy.  They can be battered (like the recipe below), or they can be naked with just some salt.  Or naked with other spices. 

Below are 2 recipes for tasty, crispy french fries.

Crispy French Fries

Serves 6

Ingredients 

1/2 cup white sugar

3 cups warm water

3 large russet potatoes – peeled, and sliced into 1/4 inch strips

6 cups vegetable oil for frying

salt to taste (or any other seasoning…paprika, seasoned salt, onion salt, garlic salt, grill seasoning…the choices are endless!)

Directions 

In a bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water. Soak potatoes in water mixture for 15 minutes. Remove from water, and dry thoroughly on paper towels.   Heat oil to 360 degrees f and cook the fries for about 2 minutes, or until limp but not browned.  Remove from the oil, let drain and cool.  Increase the oil to 375 degrees f, and fry until golden brown.  Remove and season immediately.

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Seasoned Fries

Serves 6

Ingredients

1/2 cup white sugar

3 cups warm water

3 large russet potatoes, peeled

2 cup all-purpose flour

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp salt

2 tsp paprika

2 cups water, or enough to make pancake like batter 

6 cups vegetable oil for frying

Directions

In a bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water. Soak potatoes in water mixture for 15 minutes. Remove from water, and dry thoroughly on paper towels.   Heat oil to 360 degrees f and cook the fries for approximately 2 minutes, or until limp but not browned.  Remove from the oil, let drain and cool.

Increase the oil temperature to 375 degrees f.  While the fries are cooling, in a large bowl, mix together the flour, seasonings, and water.  It should have the consistency of pancake batter.   Drop a handful of fries into the batter, and gently (so you don’t break them) remove them with tongs.    Let drain for a few seconds over the bowl, then place them in the hot oil.  If the fries start to stick together, wait about 30 seconds and break apart with a spatula.  Cook until golden brown.  Remove and drain on a paper towel or paper bag.

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Fried Pork Chops

This recipe is so basic that I’m almost embarrassed posting it.  But after thinking back when I was young and raising my son, I really didn’t know how to make a lot of recipes that I now see as ‘basic’ and ‘easy’.  This is a good go to Saturday staple (at least for me), but of course any day of the week is a good day to eat pork!!   

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 pork chops (at least 3/4 inch thick)

salt

pepper

garlic powder

3 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

1 cup shortening

Directions

 Apply salt, pepper, garlic powder to both sides of the pork chops, press the seasoning into the meat.  Let sit for about 10 minutes. 

While the meat is resting; mix the flour and breadcrumbs.  Using tongs, dip the chops in the eggs, then coat both sides with the flour mixture.  Place the pork chops on a cooling rack and place in the refrigerator for about an hour to let the coating set on the pork chops.  (this helps the coating stay on while frying).

In a cast iron skillet, heat the shortening to med-med high heat.  Fry the chops about 5 minutes each side.  Remove and drain on a cooling rack.  Using a paper towel, gently dab the top of the chops to remove any excess oil.

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Fried Morel Mushrooms

When I lived in the Philipines as a child, this is something our housekeeper made a couple of times and it always left an impression on me, though at the time I never knew what kind of mushrooms were used.  Fast forward to about 5 years ago… I was at a friends and she made these, and as soon as I tasted one, that memory immediately came back. Ask anyone, and they’ll tell you… Because of the unique tast of Morel’s the only way to fry them up is in butter.  Don’t go messin’ them up with olive oil and stuff like that.

Serves 4

Ingredients
1 gallon Water
1 cup Salt
1 lb morel mushrooms
1/2 cup butter (not margerine)
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs

Directions
Cut the mushrooms in half length wise. Fill a large bowl with the water and salt and stir to desolve. Add the mushrooms to the salt water and allow them to soak for 4 hours. This will kill and clean out any bugs inside the mushrooms. Drain and dry with a paper towel. Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat (don’t let the butter burn please). While the butter is heating, beat the eggs and milk in a shallow bowl. Coat the mushrooms in the egg and milk mixture, then toss them in the panko crumbs. Carefully place the coated mushrooms in the heated oil. Cook the mushrooms until they are golden brown, flipping to brown both sides.
When finished, drain them on a paper towel. Season with salt & pepper.

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Fried Chicken Wings

This is one of my favorite recipes!  I know it’s basic.  Maybe somewhat boring.  But I love wings!!  I usually enjoy half the batch bare, and the other half I drizzle with warm honey spiked with red pepper flakes!!  Oh.  So.  Yummy!

Serves 2

Ingredients
2/3 cup dry panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp pepper
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
10 chicken wings

Directions
Heat oil to 375 degrees F. 
In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the bread crumbs, flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper. In a small bowl, whisk egg and water. Cut chicken wings into three sections; discard wing tips. Dip wings in egg, then place in bag and shake to coat.  After you’ve completed coating all the wings, place them on a baking rack, and let them sit for 15-20 minutes. In small batches, fry until golden brown and the juices run clear.

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My Famous Chicken Fried Steak

This is a recipe that I received about 10 years ago, and tinkered with to make my own. Though it’s not fancy, this is probably the recipe I’m most proud of, because it doesn’t matter who I make it for…they always want the recipe! And, they always want more. And, if I can toot my own horn for a minute…I put this recipe on All Recipes and it’s the highest rated CFS recipe on the site!!  Yeeeeaaayyy!!

It takes a bit of work, but it’s well worth it!

Serves 4

4 beef cube steaks
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 egg
1 tablespoon hot sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups vegetable shortening for deep frying
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups milk
kosher salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions
Pound the steaks to about 1/4-inch thickness. Place 2 cups of flour in a shallow bowl. In a separate bowl, stir together the baking powder, baking soda, pepper, and salt; stir in the buttermilk, egg, hot sauce, and garlic. Lightly salt and pepper the steaks. Dredge each steak first in the flour, then in the batter, and again in the flour. Pat the flour onto the surface of each steak so they are completely coated with dry flour.
Heat the shortening in a deep cast-iron skillet to 325 degrees F. Fry the steaks until evenly golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Place fried steaks on a plate with paper towels to drain. Drain the fat from the skillet, reserving 1/4 cup of the liquid and as much of the solid remnants as possible.
Return the skillet to medium-low heat with the reserved oil. Whisk the remaining flour into the oil. Scrape the bottom of the pan with a spatula to release solids into the gravy. Stir in the milk, raise the heat to medium, and bring the gravy to a simmer, cook until thick, 6 to 7 minutes. Season with kosher salt and pepper. Spoon the gravy over the steaks to serve.

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Fried Chicken Gizzards

Yeah. I know. This is alot of work (ok, not really alot of work, just takes a while), but it’s worth every minute. I grew up on southern food, and this is something my mom used to make as a snack, or sometimes even lunch. If you have no experience with gizzards, they can be pretty chewy. That’s the reason for the boiling. Some people let them sit in buttermilk overnight (to get them tender), and use it the next day in place of the eggs for the coating. Either way works fine. Please think of me when you’re enjoying these chicken innards… = )

Serves 2

Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds chicken gizzards
1 cup all-purpose flour, divided
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon garlic powder
3 eggs
Vegetable oil for deep frying

Directions
Clean the gristle and fat from the gizzards, and rinse under cold water. Place gizzards in a pot of cold water seasoned with 1/2 tbsp each of salt, pepper, garlic powder. Bring water and gizzards to a boil for about 45 minutes. Strain gizzards using a colander, and cool.
Combine 1/2 cup flour, and the remaining salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a plastic bag. Shake well to combine. In a large bowl, combine the eggs and set aside.
Preheat vegetable oil to medium-high heat (375 degrees F).
After the gizzards have cooled, in small batches, toss the gizzards in the unseasoned 1/2 cup flour and shake off excess, dip into the egg mixture, then dredge in the seasoned flour and coat thoroughly. Shake off excess flour and deep fry the gizzards for about 2-3 minutes, or until they’re golden brown.
Remove to paper towels to drain.

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