Buttermilk Fried Chicken

I never thought about brining chicken and always just associated it with turkeys on Thanksgiving. But, after this recipe, I realized I'll always brine chicken now - haha.

Chicken Brine

I just added water, salt, honey, bay leaves, garlic, peppercorn, rosemary, thyme, parsley, and lemons all together in a big pot and boiled it down for about 2 minutes.

The brine has to be chilled before putting in the chicken. It takes a LONG time to chill so remember to plan ahead - something I should have done...

Chicken

Keller recommends using 2.5 to 3 pound whole chickens to ensure that the coating is proportional and that the cooking times given in his book are more accurate. Whole Foods didn't have chicken that small and ended up buying one 3.5 to 4 pounds. It'll probably be best to get your chicken at a butcher or farmer's market.

This recipe asks for the chicken to be cut into 10 pieces - in Ad Hoc at Home, Keller shows how to butcher the chicken into ten. So using a butcher knife and scissor, I ended up with two legs, two thighs, two wings, and four chicken breasts.

Once the brine was chilled and the chicken was cut, I added the chicken into the pot of brine and chilled for 12 hours. Brining for more than 12 hours will make the chicken too salty, so remember to take it out on time.

After the 12 hours of brining, I washed the chicken in cold water and patted them dry. Next, I got the canola oil ready for frying. Keller had set temperatures for different parts of the chicken so I had to use the thermometer to keep the oil in check. While the oil was heating up, I started the coating. The chicken was first coated in the flour mixture, then the buttermilk, and then another coat of the flour mixture.

After coating the chicken and the oil was around the right temperature, I started frying the chicken. Yum!! After all the chicken is fried, Keller suggested frying a few springs of rosemary for a few seconds and then sprinkle it on the chicken. Also add a bit of salt and pepper. Oh, and if some of the chicken gets cold while the other parts are frying, you can warm them up in the oven.

Thoughts: The chicken was juicy and the crust was crispy and delicious. The 12 hour brine was definitely worth it. No wonder this dish is a big hit at the restaurant. I wish I planned this out better and made some of Keller's mashed potatoes, biscuits, and coleslaw with this :( Maybe next time... Anyways, so good! Nomnomnom.