Best Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Secrets to the best fried chicken. Learn my 3 secrets and get the recipe for the best buttermilk fried chicken.

Course Entree

Cuisine American, Best

Level Intermediate

Main Ingredient Poultry

Diet Low Sugar

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Brining Time 12

Total Time 12 25

Servings servings

Calories 553kcal

Ingredients

1 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
½ teaspoon black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
2 cloves garlic (finely grated)
½ small onion (finely grated)
2 cups buttermilk
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
4 whole chicken legs
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon onion powder
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon ground celery seed
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 Litre vegetable oil (for frying)

Instructions

Put the 1 teaspoon celery seed, 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, ½ teaspoon black peppercorns, and 1 bay leaf in a spice grinder and grind. Add the spices, ½ small onion and 2 cloves garlic into a gallon sized freezer bag with the 2 cups buttermilk, 1 tablespoon salt and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar. Seal the bag and shake to combine. Add the 4 whole chicken legs and seal the bag, pushing out as much air as possible, so the chicken is submerged in the buttermilk. Refrigerate overnight.
1 teaspoon celery seed, 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, ½ teaspoon black peppercorns, 1 bay leaf, 2 cloves garlic, ½ small onion, 2 cups buttermilk, 1 tablespoon salt, 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, 4 whole chicken legs
In a gallon sized freezer bag, combine the 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 2 teaspoons paprika, 1 teaspoon ground celery seed and ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper and shake to combine. Remove the chicken from the buttermilk brine and use paper towels to dry off the chicken and remove any extra bits of spices. Add the dried chicken pieces into the freezer bag with the flour one at a time and toss to coat. Shake any excess flour off as you transfer the chicken to a wire rack.
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 2 teaspoons paprika, 1 teaspoon ground celery seed, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Strain the buttermilk brine through a sieve to remove the spices. Dip the chicken in the buttermilk mixture, then put each piece back in the bag with the flour and apply a second thicker coating of flour. Place the chicken on the rack and let it air dry for at least 1 hour.
In a large heavy bottomed pot, add the 1 Litre vegetable oil. The oil should be at least 2" deep. Heat over medium high heat until it reaches 340 degrees F. Carefully add the chicken to the hot oil. The temperature will fall a bit, and you want to keep the oil right around 320 degrees F for the duration of they frying, so adjust the heat source as needed. The chicken will take about 12-15 minutes to cook through and should be golden brown on the outside. You can use a meat thermometer to check and see if the chicken is cooked on the inside, but take the chicken out of the oil once before checking, or the juices coming out of the chicken will make the oil splatter.
1 Litre vegetable oil
As the chicken is done, remove them from the oil and drain on a paper towel lined wire rack. Let the fried chicken rest for a few minutes and serve.

Nutrition