20 Scrumptious Fried Chicken Recipes

Lots of variety in this week’s Recipe Hit List, I’ve hand-picked recipes from around the ‘net for American-style fried chicken, Southern fried, oven fried, spicy and Asian inspired plus a few healthier versions for those who love the taste of fried chicken, but hate the calories. Bonus: Did someone really figure out the 11 secret spices for Kentucky Fried Chicken? Article listed at bottom. Enjoy!

Fried Chicken Recipes

*Note: Descriptions below are quotes from the recipe sites

Buttermilk Fried Chicken with Pan Gravy From lifesambrosia.com

1. Buttermilk Fried Chicken with Pan Gravy: (as seen in picture) I only use chicken drumsticks. I’m not sure why they are so coveted maybe it is because they stay so perfectly juicy and are the easiest pieces to eat. However, if they are not as popular in your house substitute a whole fryer chicken so you can get a variety. Recipe from Life’s Ambrosia.
2. Edna Lewis’s Fried Chicken: Who is Edna Lewis? I didn’t realize it at the time, but the she was one of the most respected Southern cookbook authors of her time. She is a beacon of fried chicken perfection. That might explain why I didn’t think twice about the insanely long method and all that fat. She advocates a soak in a brine and then then another soak in buttermilk. Then she fries it all in a pound of lard and a stick of butter. Recipe from The Paupered Chef.
3. Ginger Fried Chicken: This recipe by Elizabeth Andoh, the doyenne of Japanese cooking, is found in her cookbook “At Home With Japanese Cooking” (Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1980). It results in a lovely, crisp chicken, especially if you heed the temperature of the cooking oil. Recipe found at SFGate.
4. Chicken Planks (Kinda like Chicken Fingers, ONLY BETTER): The taste and texture of this dish are so amazing, you’d never know the ingredients were so few and so simple. Recipe from Southern Plate.
5. Southern Fried Chicken: Paula Deen’s recipe on The Food Network.
6. Chicken Karaage (Sesame Fried Chicken) Recipe: Chicken karaage calls for really simple ingredients but the end result is pleasing. I love it that the flavors are very clean–which is a signature style of Japanese cooking. In no time, I finished my one bowl of chicken karaage and had to fry up a second serving to satisfy my hunger and craving. Chicken karaage/sesame fried chicken is also a simple meal to prepare and takes less than 30 minutes (I marinated the chicken for only 10 minutes!). Recipe from Rasa Malaysia.
7. Hot ‘n Spicy Fried Chicken: From Betty’s Soul Food Collection… Add black-eyed peas or a mess of greens and lots of piping-hot cornbread. Recipe from Betty Crocker.
8. Super-Crunchy “Fried” Chicken: These cornflake-coated chicken breasts are baked, not fried. Recipe found at Delish.
9. Spicy Oven-Fried Chicken: Don’t be intimidated by the amount of hot pepper sauce in the marinade; the chicken will pick up only some of the heat. Recipe from Epicurious.
10. Korean Fried Chicken Wings with Ginger Soy Glaze: While fried chicken may be something American’s consider their own, the Korean style is also extremely delicious. Their method of a very lightly battered and double fried chicken wing renders out the fat and results in an ultra crispy and delicious wing. Add to that a variety of glazes such as ginger soy and spicy glaze, it’s no wonder Korean fried chicken joints are popping up all over the west and east coast. Recipe from Ravenous Couple.
11. LunaCafe’s Spicy Fried Chicken: I have been frying chicken since I was 8 years old. My Kentucky born and raised Dad taught me his recipe for basic southern-style fried chicken, which I assume he learned from his mother, my Grandma Maisie. Recipe from LunaCafe.
12. Buttermilk Fried Chicken: Serves 6, prep 10 min, cook 40 min, brine several hours before to overnight. Recipe from Chaos In The Kitchen.
13. Fried Chicken for One: Anyway, sure Popeye’s is full of greasy goodness, but in about fifteen minutes I can make fried chicken myself and have the comfort of knowing I would neither be eating Frankenchicken nor creating more waste from the takeout packaging. If I’ve got the choice, time, and resources to make my own, why wouldn’t I? To me, it’s worth the (very minor) effort. And the results are about as finger lickin’ good as they can be. Recipe from The Beet Goes On.
14. Oven-Fried Chicken Recipe: Great news—crunchy, flavorful fried chicken can be healthy. We marinate skinless chicken in buttermilk to keep it juicy. A light coating of flour, sesame seeds and spices, misted with olive oil, forms an appealing crust during baking. And with only 7 grams of fat per serving rather than the 20 in typical fried chicken—that is good news. Recipe from Eating Well.
15. Southern Pan-Fried Chicken: We have blended our best chicken-frying tips from Virginia and Alabama in this recipe: it requires a bit of extra effort, but the results are absolutely outstanding. The chicken gets two long soaks, Alabama-style, first in brine and then in buttermilk. The frying fat is a special mix — Virginia-style — of lard and sweet butter, flavored with a slice of country ham, which makes the chicken extra crispy and rich-tasting. Recipe from Leite’s Culinaria.
16. Recipe of the Day: Spicy Supercrunchy Fried Chicken: This spicy combination is my favorite; though it looks like a sodden mess when you put it together, fries up beautifully. For the best crust and flavor, the ideal medium for frying is a combination of lard and butter, but olive oil (or neutral oil like corn or grapeseed) is fine also. Recipe from The New York Times.
17. Spicy Wok-Fried Chicken with Chilis: Lazi jiding is like a more sophisticated version of kung pao chicken. It’s smokier, spicier (a lot spicier if you chop up the chilis), and only a bit more complex in its preparation. (The way I make it is more like shallow-frying. I use about 1 1/2 cups of oil, and dredge the chicken in a cornstarch-salt-pepper mixture beforehand.) Few fried chicken entrees are enveloped by such a succulent tongue-tingling sauce. Recipe from Appetite For China.
18. How To Make Finger-Licking Fried Chicken: With techniques that are simple and are sure to produce perfect results each time…just make sure to lock the front door so you don’t have neighbors following their noses into your kitchen! Recipe from The Kitchn.
19. Karaage: Japanese-Chinese Style Fried Chicken: This is one of my favorite chicken recipes, karaage. The word kara refers to China, meaning that this method of preparing chicken originated in Chinese cooking (age means deep-fried). However I really haven’t encountered a Chinese dish that is exactly like this, though there are many deep-fried chicken dishes there (such as my favorite takeout, orange chicken.) The method of marinating meat in fresh ginger to get rid of any gaminess or so, which is quite disliked in both Japanese and Chinese cooking generally, is fundamentally Chinese I believe. Recipe from Just Hungry.
20. Lemon-Brined Fried Chicken: To make this juicy and delectably crisp chicken, chef Thomas Keller soaks it in a lemony brine, then coats and fries it. The chicken, which is served every other Monday at Ad Hoc, is one of the most popular dishes at the restaurant. Recipe from Food & Wine.

Bonus: Don’t tell the colonel! KFC recipe may be out:

Ron Douglas shares the ingredients for his version of KFC’s 11 herbs and spices recipe

• 1 teaspoon ground oregano
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground sage
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon onion salt
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons Accent

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