First of all if you wanted chicken ‘fingers’ or something boneless, click the red X.

Anyway, this is a long-winded way to fry chicken because you ideally brine your chicken pieces the night before, and that means planning and other annoyances BUT IT’S SOOO WORTH IT. Michael Ruhlman really breaks it down on his website, and every time I stray from this method I regret it. The brine is awesome! Any number of hours in the brine really makes a massive difference in the flavor of the chicken and the tenderness. It’s also not an exact science, just throw it together and call it a day mk. Try it once and you’ll never go back!

Recipe

For the brine:

1. Put a little oil down in a pot. Saute the onions and garlic to soften them.
2. Add the salt, and stir for a minute, and then the same with the rosemary. You can definitely just throw the whole branches in there.
3. Add the water, cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice in. Then drop the whole lemon halves in. I like to leave it on the stove to let everything get acquainted. Take it off, let it cool and then add the chicken so it is submerged or transfer to a ziplock bag or large bowl.
4. Stick it in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight.  If you know you’re not going to eat it the next day, you can also brine the chicken for a night and then dump the brine and refrigerate the chicken for another night to dry the skin out.

For the chicken:

1. Turn the oven on to 250 degrees. Stick a baking sheet with a rack on it inside. THE RACK IS CRITICAL. This is so that when the chicken is fried, it can finish, continue to crisp all over, and stay warm while you finish the rest and it can stay in there until you’re ready to eat.
2. Set up your dredge station. Put all the flour in one bowl to season it – the amount will depend on how much chicken, use your brain. SEASON AGGRESSIVELY. Salt, pepper, paprika, CAYENNE all goes in the flour. I use a lot more black pepper than you think you should. The flour should be bright red and speckled with pepper. Split the flour between two bowls.
3. In the third bowl, add buttermilk and mix it with hot sauce. This gives a delicious vinegar-y bite that I love, but you can leave it out.
4. Line up your bowls flour-buttermilk-flour and on the end, a rack. One piece at a time now. Take a piece with one hand, add it to one flour bowl and shake off excess. Put it on the rack. Dip the second piece in the flour. Continue until all your chicken pieces have the first coat of flour. Letting the pieces sit between coats helps build a beautifully crunchy crust.
5. Starting with the first piece you added to the flour, add it to the buttermilk to coat. Add to the flour. Put it back on the rack. Repeat until you have a crust on all your chicken pieces.
6. Add a lot of oil to a big pot and heat it to 375 degrees if you have a thermometer. If not.. I just find something and throw it in and see if it sizzles and floats. Last time, it was a kale leaf. Chunk of bread works too.  
7. Add the chicken, don’t crowd the pan, and fry until golden and delicious. Put the pieces in the oven while you fry the rest.

A word on undercooking chicken, don’t:

Let’s address a cook’s biggest fear: undercooking fried chicken. Here’s how we’re gonna make sure that doesn’t happen to you:

• When you put the chicken down in the oil, leave it the hell alone and stop poking at it.
• Y’all a meat thermometer is not a bad thing. 165 degrees internally is the goal.
• We’re putting pieces in the oven to finish, right? Take one out at the very last minute and check it, either w/ a thermometer or just cut into it cause you wanna try it anyway.