FoxxFire's Famous Fried Fowl
Beat your meat!
1.5-2 lbs frozen chicken
Defrost. Once done, trim as desired. For country style, leave the breast whole. For strips, cut perpendicular to the grain of the meat, about two cuts per breast. And for large nuggets, cut the breast in half, then cut in half again perpendicular to the first cut.
Put the chicken on a cutting board, and cover with plastic wrap. Using a meat hammer tenderizer (or, in my case, the top of my regular hammer), pound the chicken down to half the height it was. This breaks up the muscle fibers, adds more surface area for marinade and fry mix, and lets it cook quicker.
Marinate!
1 cup milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
.5 teaspoon Accent seasoning
.5 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup apple vinegar
Add milk and egg to a medium sized glass mixing bowl. Beat till frothy. Add the rest of the ingredients, beat till mixed. Add prepared chicken. Cover and put in fridge. Allow to marinate at least 4 hours, and up to 24 hours.
Fry!
Put your cast iron pan on the burner, and set to medium-high heat. While pan is heating up, prepare the fry mix.
1 cup flour
2 tablespoons corn starch
1 teaspoon baking powder
A few shakes salt and pepper
Add ingredients in large mixing bowl, mix well.
Now add canola oil (or your favorite high-temp oil) to the pan until it's a little more than halfway full. While the oil is heating, start dredging your chicken in the fry mix. Coat and pat the mixture into the chicken, getting about 3-4 pieces ready (I let them sit in the mixture until ready to use).
Once the oil in the pan is gently rippling, add the chicken (gently shaking off excess fry mix beforehand), slowly laying each piece in so that there is no splash back. Let the chicken cook for about 3 minutes, then (using tongs or some such!) gently turn the piece onto the other side for another 3 minutes. Turn once more to check for color; it should be a nice golden brown. Once done, remove the piece to a paper towel lined pan. Repeat until done!
This chicken goes well BBQ sauce, ranch, blue cheese, etc. Can be served as is, or in a bun as a sandwich.
For regional flair, change up the marinade. For Asian dishes, use a substitute combination of 1/4 cup soy sauce and 1/4 cup rice vinegar. For Italian, add basil and oregano.
Ultimately, this is just a general guideline for first time friers. Practice makes perfect, and don't be afraid to experiment with your own variations!
