Fried Chicken Recipe

You need an electric skillet, preferably Teflon-coated. An electric skillet because the temperature is consistent throughout the pan and you can control it more easily. Although I was trained on a well seasoned cast iron skillet. You need a bunch of brown paper bags, to put the chicken pieces on after removing them from the skillet. Thick paper bags are ideal because they absorb the grease well.

Soak a whole fryer chicken in salted water overnight in the refrigerator. Don’t go crazy with the salt; a few pinches should do it. (Using buttermilk is better than water in my opinion.) When it comes time to cook, cut the chicken into small pieces and pat them dry. Smaller pieces tend to retain their moisture and don’t get as greasy as bigger pieces. If you’re just cooking breasts, cut the breasts into two or three small pieces. And if you want to be a tad health-conscious, remove the skin from the breasts and thighs. (I promise, you won’t even miss it although I do miss the crunchy skin.)

Coat each piece of chicken in flour and seasoning.Don't use much beyond a little salt, pepper & paprika. I like to add onion power in addition to Cajun spices.When I was a child & cooking w/my momma I loved this part 'cause I'd get me a brown bag w/all the flour, seasoning, etc. & shake that bag to a fare thee well. That way there would be total coverage. Turn the electric skillet to 350 degrees or if you use a heavy evenly heating skillet just add enough Crisco so that there’s about an inch of melted shortening. (A little is all you need.) When the oil is hot but not smoking start adding your pieces to the skillet.

I’ve never really timed the frying, but after, say, 10 minutes, pick up a piece with tongs (to avoid piercing it) and look at the side that’s been face down in the skillet. If the color is a rich golden brown, turn it over. Avoid turning the chicken more than once. If you like more seasoning, gently add a little more during the cooking process, once per side. When both sides are golden brown, remove the piece and place it on a paper bag. Let it cool for a few minutes and move it to another dry spot on the bag.

Should there be leftover chicken, don’t wrap it up and put it in the refrigerator. You’ll only make it greasy and cold. Just store the chicken on a plate overnight, in a cupboard (unless you have a bug problem). This step has often raised eyebrows, but I’ve been doing this for years and never had a problem. Plus, you’d be surprised and delighted by how delicious a piece of room-temperature fried chicken is for breakfast