Place chicken breasts in hot pan and cook for 6-8 minutes, until golden brown on the first side. Flip chicken breasts and cook an additional 6-8 minutes, until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F in the thickest part of the chicken.
My mother used to surprise us on Sundays with this deep-fried chicken breast, which we would eat while watching Walt Disney on TV.
What type of chicken is best for frying?
This is really a matter of preference. This recipe can be used to prepare any style of fried chicken, whether you prefer boneless, skinless breasts or thighs, all legs, or a whole chicken cut up into a variety of tasty pieces for everyone to enjoy.
I use boneless, skinless breasts or thighs when frying chicken to chop for a crispy chicken salad. But when we order traditional southern fried chicken for dinner, it usually consists of bone-in chicken from a whole chicken. If using the latter method, make sure to split the breasts exactly in half before soaking. Instead of trying to fry whole, bone-in chicken breasts, you can use this method to make them cook much more quickly and easily.
Remember that the time needed to fry the chicken will vary depending on the cut and whether it has bones in or not.
Place the chicken pieces in a large bowl filled with seasoned buttermilk to soak. I soak my chicken in buttermilk for around 4-8 hours to make sure its tender and moist. You can go up to 24 hours, or skip the soak and just dip the chicken in the buttermilk. Adding salt, pepper, and paprika with a few shakes of tabasco sauce to the buttermilk brine helps season the chicken before it ever gets coated in the seasoned flour. Plus, the buttermilk has enzymes that help tenderize the meat as well as seal in flavor. So if you have the time for the soak, I highly recommend it.
Combine flour with herbs and spices in a large ziploc bag. Add the soaked chicken pieces, drained of their buttermilk brine, a few at a time. Seal the bag and shake well to coat each piece in the seasoned flour mixture, repeating until all of the chicken has been coated.
Arrange the chicken pieces on a baking sheet and cover with a damp paper towel. Let them sit for about 20 minutes until the flour coating has absorbed the moisture from the buttermilk and has a tacky appearance. This step is key for 2 reasons. (1) It gives the chicken pieces time to lose their chill from the fridge so they dont go into the hot oil while still super cold. This means better, more even cooking and less of a temperature drop to the oil in the pan. (2) The seasoned flour coating fries up better and less is lost in the frying process when it reaches this tacky stage.
Set up your frying station and heat the oil to 350 degrees F. Make your life easier by setting up a frying station. Have a clean baking sheet lined with a wire rack on one side of a large cast iron skillet or other heavy bottom pan filled. Set your chicken to be fried, tongs, and thermometers on the other side.
Fry the chicken a few pieces at a time. Dont crowd the pan and try to fry all of the chicken all at once. I find that 3-4 pieces is about all that can be managed at a time. Flip the chicken occasionally until it is evenly golden brown and cooked through to an internal temperature of 165 for chicken breasts and 175 for chicken legs and thighs. The time will vary depending on the size of your pieces and whether you are using boneless or bone-in pieces.
Transfer finished chicken pieces to the baking sheet lined with a wire rack. Never place fried chicken on paper towels to cool thinking it will absorb grease. This just results in fried chicken that is soggy on the bottom. Keep the chicken warm in a 275 degree F oven while you fry the remaining chicken pieces.
What temperature does the oil need to be at to fry chicken?
The ideal oil temperature is between 325 and 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and you should try to keep it there. You run the risk of burning the chicken on the outside before the inside has a chance to fully cook if the oil gets much hotter. Lower than that, and the chicken will absorb more oil and become greasy.
Use a heavy-duty cast iron skillet, avoid packing the pan with too many pieces of chicken at once, and use a deep-fry thermometer to keep the temperature consistent throughout the process are my best recommendations for maintaining an even temperature.
I’ve had success with a different strategy that calls for only cooking the chicken pieces for two to three minutes on each side before placing them on a baking sheet with a wire rack and baking the chicken at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until it is thoroughly cooked.
To know for sure when the chicken is done, make sure your meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F.
Bone-in pieces: Around 24-28 minutes in the oven.
Boneless pieces: Around 15-18 minutes in the oven.
The benefit of this method is that it doesn’t require spending nearly as much time frying the chicken in batches while standing in front of a hot oil pan on the stove. Instead, you are just crisping up the outer coating. This indicates that all of the chicken is finished at once. It’s a good strategy in particular if you’re doubling the recipe to feed a large group of people.
Tips for the best fried chicken
Cut bone-in chicken breasts in half. They are so hard to get right and take much longer to cook than other chicken pieces otherwise. Just use a sharp knife and cut right through the bones.
Dont crowd the pan! Yes, its a little annoying to work in batches, but you will get much better results. Plus, you wont have to deal with the frustration of oil temperature dropping drastically.
Use the buttermilk soak. If you dont have buttermilk, you can make a substitute by adding 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar to a 1 cup measuring cup. Fill the measuring cup the rest of the way with milk for each cup of buttermilk. Let that sit for 5 minutes and youve got buttermilk (or a close substitute at least).
Drain on a wire rack. So many fried chicken recipes mention draining on paper towels, but that destroys the crispy coating! A wire rack is a much better approach.
FAQ
How do you know when chicken breast is done frying?
Check the meat’s juices by poking it to see if they are red or clear. This technique only works with chicken. If you cut into properly cooked chicken and the juices run clear, the chicken is done. Your chicken may need to cook a little bit longer if the juices are red or pinkish in color.
How long should I fry my raw chicken?
When the skin is a deep golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken registers 165°, the chicken has finished cooking. This process takes 10 minutes for wings and 12 minutes for thighs, legs, and breasts.
How long does it take chicken to fry?
As a general rule, chicken should be fried for about 7-8 minutes per side. But remember that the size and thickness of the pieces can vary. When the thickest part of the chicken registers at 165° and the skin is crisp and a deep golden-brown color, the chicken is fully cooked.
How do you fry chicken breast without it drying out?
Instructions
Flatten the chicken breasts. …
Season the chicken breasts. …
Heat the pan. …
Without stirring, cook the chicken breasts over medium heat for one minute.
Flip the chicken breasts. …
Turn the heat down to low. …
Cover the pan and cook on low for 10 minutes.
Allow to sit for an additional 10 minutes after turning off the heat.
