Fried Chicken

I had some left over buttermilk from making cornbread so I decided to make something I've only made once before, fried chicken. The first time I made it I put the wrong crust on it so the crust burned and the chicken was raw inside. It was disgusting in all honesty. Luckily this time it turned out all right. If you want to watch how to make this dish before cooking it, I suggest going to food network and looking up Alton Brown's recipe for fried chicken (also below) and watch his video. I think the key to this chicken is soaking it over night in buttermilk. It just makes the texture and flavor of the final product so good.

Ingredients:

1 broiler/fryer chicken, cut into 8 pieces
2 cups low fat buttermilk
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons Hungarian paprika
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
Flour, for dredging
Safflower oil, for frying

Directions:

1. Place chicken pieces into a plastic bag and cover with buttermilk. Place in a plastic container to prevent leakage disaster and cover and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours.

2. Pour oil so it comes 1/2 inch up the side of a cast iron skillet. Make sure oil comes about half way up chicken cuz you'll flip it once and you want even cooking.

3. Drain chicken in a colander. Combine salt, paprika, garlic powder, and chili powder. Liberally season chicken with this mixture. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess. It's a good idea to let the chicken rest for about 2 minutes so the coating will stick better to the chicken.

4. Place chicken skin side down into the pan. Put thighs in the center, and breast and legs around the edge of the pan. The oil should come half way up the pan. Cook chicken until golden brown on each side, approximately 10 to 12 minutes per side. More importantly, the internal temperature should be right around 180 degrees. (Be careful to monitor shortening temperature every few minutes.)

5. Drain chicken on a rack over a sheet pan. Don't drain by setting chicken directly on paper towels or brown paper bags. If you need to hold the chicken before serving, cover loosely with foil but avoid holding in a warm oven, especially if it's a gas oven.