SPICY BUTTERMILK FRIED CHICKEN
Recipe courtesy of Chef John Currence -- from an upcoming third cookbook;
Photo Courtesy of Ed Anderson
The key to making this recipe, which is excellent fried chicken, is keeping the oil at temperature and not overloading the pan. If you’re worried about making a mess in your kitchen, move along. Bottom line is: you gotta break a few eggs to make an omelet. If you love fried chicken, no mess is enough to keep you from cooking…
INGREDIENTS
-
8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
-
1 quart FULL FAT buttermilk
-
1/2 cup Texas Pete hot sauce
-
3 teaspoons cayenne
-
3 teaspoons salt
-
3 cups White Lilly all-purpose flour
-
1 cup Wondra
-
2 teaspoons black pepper
-
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
-
1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
-
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
-
4 tablespoons lard
-
Vegetable oil for frying
METHOD
-
Wash chicken thoroughly and trim any excess skin from the thighs. Pat chicken dry and place on a cookie sheet, skin side up in the refrigerator. In the meantime, combine buttermilk, hot sauce, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper in a bowl and blend fully.
-
Once chicken has finished in the refrigerator, place in buttermilk mix and chill overnight (or at least 2 hours). In a large freezer bag or brown paper grocery bag, combine flours, remaining salt, remaining cayenne, onion power and garlic powder and combine well.
-
Heat lard and enough oil to go half way up the side of a 12-inch cast iron skillet to 350º. Pull chicken from buttermilk and allow to drain well. Working 2 thighs at a time, dust chicken in flour and set aside.
-
Fry 4 thighs at a time only, turning every 5 minuets until chicken is golden brown and at an internal temperature of 155º.
-
Drain on a cooling rack and eat immediately or later on in the evening after you have stayed out too late and not eaten enough...
SEAFOOD FRITTERS
The Eastern Shore of Virginia is, for all intents and purposes, clam country. In fact, the Old Dominion State has the largest clam fishery in the United States, hauling in hundreds of millions of both farm-raised and wild varieties, from little necks, cherrystones, and razors along the coastal peninsula’s Chesapeake Bay shorelines to quahogs off the banks of the Atlantic Ocean. And if you’re not eating them raw or roasted, there are few ways better to indulge than the local delicacy of a pan-fried fritter.
CHESAPEAKE OYSTER STUFFING
A round of oysters is always cause for celebration, and this time of year on the Chesapeake Bay, that shows up in the form of oyster stuffing. Whether stuffed into a bird or cooked in a cast-iron pan, it’s a time-honored tradition during the holiday season. Or, as Harris’s book reports The Baltimore Sun putting it in 1914, “Inside the oyster belt at Thanksgiving time, it is nothing short of heresy to fail to serve turkey with good old-fashioned oyster stuffing.” Throw it into a Joan and consider it tradition.
SEARED HANGER STEAK WITH CHARRED SCALLION SALSA
There was a time not that long ago when you’d walk into certain butcher shops, ask for a hanger steak, and get a quizzical look. Perhaps that’s because, for some time, the secondary cut was also known as a “Hanging Tender,” hailing from inside the ribcage (in fact, it’s part of the diaphragm), as well as “the Butcher’s Steak,” with those cunning meatmongers often keeping this deeply flavorful, textured specimen for themselves. “But the gig is up,” says Pryles, who shares her pan-cooked version with us, featuring wagyu, no less, and a bright salsa to boot.
Shop All Cookware
Got this recipe from a friend? Sign up below so you never miss a recipe.
