Read The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook Online
Authors: The Editors at America's Test Kitchen
Tags: #Cooking
The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook (148 page)
SERVES 4
We prefer the flavor and texture of thigh meat for this recipe, though an equal amount of boneless, skinless chicken breasts can be used. You will need at least a 6-quart Dutch oven for this recipe. Unless you have a taste for the incendiary, do not eat the whole chiles in the finished dish.
MARINADE AND SAUCE
³⁄ | cup low-sodium chicken broth |
8 | (2-inch) strips orange zest plus 1¹⁄ |
6 | tablespoons white vinegar |
¹⁄ | cup soy sauce |
¹⁄ | cup packed dark brown sugar |
3 | garlic cloves, minced |
1 | tablespoon grated fresh ginger |
¹⁄ | teaspoon cayenne pepper |
1¹⁄ | pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed and cut in 1¹⁄ |
2 | tablespoons cold water |
1 | tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch |
8 | small whole dried red chiles (optional) |
COATING AND FRYING OIL
3 | large egg whites |
1 | cup cornstarch |
¹⁄ | teaspoon cayenne pepper |
¹⁄ | teaspoon baking soda |
3 | cups peanut oil |
1. FOR THE MARINADE AND SAUCE:
Whisk broth, grated orange zest, orange juice, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, ginger, and cayenne together in large saucepan. Transfer ³⁄
4
cup mixture to medium bowl and add chicken. Let marinate for at least 10 minutes or up to 1 hour.
2.
Whisk water and cornstarch together in bowl. Bring broth mixture in saucepan to simmer over high heat. Whisk in cornstarch mixture, bring to simmer, and cook stirring occasionally, until thick and translucent and measures 1¹⁄
2
cups, about 1 minute. Off heat, stir in orange peel and chiles, if using; set aside.
3. FOR THE COATING:
Set wire rack in rimmed baking sheet. Lightly beat egg whites in shallow dish or pie plate until frothy. Combine cornstarch, cayenne, and baking soda in second dish. Drain chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Place half of chicken pieces in egg whites and turn to coat; transfer pieces to cornstarch mixture and coat thoroughly. Place dredged chicken pieces on prepared wire rack; repeat with remaining chicken.
4. TO FRY THE CHICKEN:
Heat oil in Dutch oven over high heat until it registers 350 degrees. Carefully place half of chicken in oil, 1 piece at a time, and fry until golden brown, about 5 minutes, turning each piece with tongs halfway through frying and adjusting heat as necessary to maintain oil at 350 degrees. Transfer chicken to large paper towel–lined plate. Return oil to 350 degrees (if necessary) over high heat and repeat with remaining chicken.
5. TO SERVE:
Reheat sauce over medium heat until simmering, about 2 minutes. Add chicken and gently toss until evenly coated and heated through. Serve immediately.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
For fried chicken to be worth the effort, it should be crisp and crackling with flavor and sport a deep mahogany exterior without any evidence of greasiness. Brining was a must for juicy, well-seasoned meat, while soaking the chicken in buttermilk tenderized the meat and added further flavor. Combining the two steps to create a buttermilk brine streamlined the process. Flour beat out all other coatings for the light crust it produced, while a double breading of flour, then egg, then more flour was better still, providing a superior base coat. Air-drying the brined chicken before breading and adding a little baking soda, baking powder, and buttermilk to the egg wash gave us a bronzed crust that remained crisp even as it cooled. Rather than submerge the chicken pieces entirely in oil, we found that pan-frying (where only half of each piece is submerged) in a large Dutch oven was much easier.
SERVES 4 TO 6
Avoid using kosher chicken in this recipe or it will be too salty. You will need at least a 6-quart Dutch oven for this recipe. Maintaining an even oil temperature is key. If using large chicken breasts (about 1 pound each), cut each breast into 3 pieces. If using smaller breasts (10 to 12 ounces each), cut each breast into 2 pieces.
8 | cups buttermilk |
¹⁄ | cup plus 2 tablespoons salt |
¹⁄ | cup sugar |
2 | tablespoons paprika |
3 | garlic heads, cloves separated, peeled, and smashed |
3 | bay leaves, crumbled |
3¹⁄ | pounds bone-in chicken pieces (split breasts cut in half, drumsticks, and/or thighs), trimmed |
3–4 | cups peanut oil or vegetable shortening |
4 | cups all-purpose flour |
1 | large egg |
1 | teaspoon baking powder |
¹⁄ | teaspoon baking soda |
1.
Whisk 7 cups buttermilk, salt, sugar, paprika, garlic, and bay leaves together in large container. Add chicken and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.
2.
Set wire rack in rimmed baking sheet. Rinse chicken well, place in single layer on prepared wire rack, and refrigerate, uncovered, for 2 hours. (At this point, chicken can be wrapped in plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 6 more hours.)
3.
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 200 degrees. Add oil to Dutch oven until it measures 2 inches deep. Heat oil over medium-high heat until it registers 375 degrees.
4.
Meanwhile, place flour in shallow dish or pie plate. Lightly beat egg, baking powder, and baking soda together in medium bowl, then whisk in remaining 1 cup buttermilk (mixture will bubble and foam). Working with 1 chicken piece at a time, dredge in flour, shaking off excess, then coat with egg mixture, allowing excess to drip off. Dredge chicken in flour again, shake off excess, and return to wire rack.
5.
When oil is hot, carefully place half of chicken in pot, skin side down, cover, and fry until deep golden brown, 7 to 11 minutes, adjusting heat as necessary to maintain oil at 325 degrees. (After 4 minutes, check chicken pieces for even browning and rearrange if some pieces are browning faster than others.) Turn chicken pieces over and continue to cook until breast pieces register 160 degrees and thighs and/or drumsticks register 175 degrees, 6 to 8 minutes. (Smaller pieces may cook faster than larger pieces. Remove pieces from pot as they reach correct temperature.) Drain chicken briefly on paper towel–lined plate, then transfer to clean wire rack set over rimmed baking sheet and keep warm in oven.
6.
Return oil to 375 degrees (if necessary) over medium-high heat and repeat with remaining chicken. Serve.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Is it possible to achieve fried chicken with a crisp crust without resorting to a quart of oil? To find an easier way to fry chicken, we started with a standard procedure of soaking the chicken in a salt and buttermilk brine and then dredging it in seasoned flour (along with a little baking powder which keeps the crust light and crisp due to the carbon dioxide released by the powder during frying). And finally, we mixed buttermilk into the dry ingredients before dredging the chicken. This created small clumps of batter that became super-crisp as they fried. After much trial and error, we discovered that a hybrid cooking method delivered an easier fried chicken with deep-fried flavor. We started by frying the chicken on the stovetop in minimal amounts of oil until it formed a light brown crust, then finished it in a hot oven to cook it through and deepen its color.
SERVES 4
A whole 4-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces, can be used instead of the chicken parts. Skinless chicken pieces are also an acceptable substitute, but the meat will come out slightly drier. If using large chicken breasts (about 1 pound each), cut each breast into 3 pieces. If using smaller breasts (10 to 12 ounces each), cut each breast into 2 pieces. A Dutch oven with an 11-inch diameter can be used in place of the straight-sided sauté pan.
1¹⁄ | cups buttermilk |
Salt and pepper | |
1 | teaspoon garlic powder |
1 | teaspoon paprika |
¹⁄ | teaspoon cayenne pepper |
Dash hot sauce | |
3¹⁄ | pounds bone-in chicken pieces (split breasts cut in half, drumsticks, and/or thighs), trimmed |
2 | cups all-purpose flour |
2 | teaspoons baking powder |
1³⁄ | cups vegetable oil |
1.
Whisk 1 cup buttermilk, 1 tablespoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, ¹⁄
4
teaspoon garlic powder, ¹⁄
4
teaspoon paprika, pinch cayenne, and hot sauce together in large bowl. Add chicken and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
2.
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Set wire rack in rimmed baking sheet. Whisk flour, baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons pepper, remaining ³⁄
4
teaspoon garlic powder, remaining ³⁄
4
teaspoon paprika, and remaining cayenne together in large bowl. Add remaining ¹⁄
4
cup buttermilk to flour mixture and mix with fingers until combined and small clumps form. Working with 1 chicken piece at a time, dredge in flour mixture, pressing mixture onto pieces to form thick, even coating. Place dredged chicken on large plate, skin side up.
3.
Heat oil in 11-inch straight-sided sauté pan over medium-high heat until it registers 375 degrees. Carefully place chicken in pan, skin side down, and fry until golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. (Adjust heat as necessary to maintain oil at 375 degrees.) Carefully flip and continue to fry until golden brown on second side, 2 to 4 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to prepared wire rack and bake until breast pieces register 160 degrees and/or thighs and drumsticks register 175 degrees, 15 to 20 minutes. (Smaller pieces may cook faster than larger pieces. Remove pieces from oven as they reach correct temperature.) Let chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Oven-fried chicken offers the promise of a quick weeknight alternative to the real thing. But most recipes leave us wondering if it really is possible to achieve real crunch and satisfying flavor in the oven. Since we knew the coatings—both the moist one that helps the crumbs adhere and the dry one that provides texture and crunch—would be the most important components, we started there. A combination of egg and Dijon mustard gave the meat a wonderfully subtle flavor and held on to a uniform layer of crumbs. Melba toast was the surprising winner for the crumb coating, providing a crunchy, flavorful, and beautifully browned exterior. Thighs and drumsticks were less prone to drying out in the oven, and we found it best to remove the skin, which doesn’t render and crisp in the oven.