Marinated Fried Chicken with Warm Potato Salad

My husband loves fried chicken and I've been on quest to find the perfect fried chicken recipe. This past weekend, we were visiting his family in the Edmonton area and one afternoon my sister-in-law and I were watching the food channel. On one show, Art Smith's recipe for friend chicken was featured and I knew I had to try it. (For those of you who don't know - as I didn't - Art Smith was Oprah's personal chef for 10 years.) I didn't expect to find the recipe online since he serves it at his Table Fifty-Two restaurant in Chicago, on Sundays only, and charges about $24 for it. I remembered the basic process from the show and thought I'd just wing it, but after an online search, I found several recipes for fried chicken claiming to be Art Smith's. I'm not sure which, if any, is authentic; my guess is they're all close, but the real recipe remains a secret. Regardless, I knew the basic process of brining and marinating in buttermilk would be delicious, so I attempted my version of it for my hubby's birthday. Here's the recipe I followed and below is exactly what I did. My recipe is for 4 pieces of chicken (2 servings) so simply double if you're using a whole chicken to serve 4-6 people.

Marinated Fried Chicken

Ingredients

1/4 cup sea salt

8 cups cold water

2-3 sprigs fresh rosemary

2-3 sprigs fresh thyme

4 pieces of skin-on chicken (I used thighs because they're my hubby's favourite)

2 cups buttermilk

1 tbsp Tabasco sauce

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tbsp baking powder

2 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp onion powder

2 tsp coarse ground pepper

2 tsp dried thyme

1-2 tsp sea salt

1/4-1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Canola, or other frying oil

Method

In a large bowl with a lid, dissolve the salt in the water (I dissolved it in about a cup of hot water, then added the rest of the cold water). Add the sprigs of rosemary and thyme, then submerge the chicken. Put the lid on the bowl and place in the fridge for 12-24 hours. Make sure you brine the chicken for at least 12 hours - this is super important for moist, tender chicken. If you really want the flavour of the herbs to get into the meat, brine for the full 24 hours.

After chicken has brined for the appropriate amount of time, drain and rinse the chicken. Reserve the herbs. Transfer chicken to another bowl (or the same one rinsed) or a large ziploc bag. (I prefer a ziploc bag because you can usually get away with a little less marinade.) Add the buttermilk, Tabasco and reserved herbs. Refrigerate and marinate for at least another 12 hours.

Once your chicken is fully brined and marinated, it's time to prepare the breading. This is where I got frustrated because the recipe I used called for Old Bay seasoning which I cannot find anywhere. Perhaps they don't sell it in Canada? I don't know, but if you know where to find it, please fill me in! I did find a "make your own Old Bay seasoning" recipe online, which I will make before I try this chicken again, but I didn't have all the necessary spices on hand. I think that the Old Bay would really make the chicken taste better, as both Bill and I found the breading a little bland. It wasn't bad; it just needed a bit more a kick. SO - if you want a really flavourful breading, try adding some of your own spices to what I've listed above, or use Old Bay or make your own (recipe here).

Combine the flour, baking soda, and spices of your choosing in a shallow bowl. Remove chicken from the buttermilk mixture, shaking a bit to remove excess moisture, and put aside,within reach. Remove the herbs from the buttermilk and transfer buttermilk to a bowl if you were marinating the chicken in a ziploc bag. If you want to, whisk an egg white into the buttermilk to help the breading stick to the chicken. I didn't do it, and it worked okay, but the breading didn't adhere to the chicken as much as I would have liked, so I'd add the egg white next time. If you've added the egg white, dip each piece of chicken in the buttermilk mixture, then dredge in the flour. Then - and this is really important for crispy chicken - dip the chicken in the buttermilk again and re-dredge in the flour. Double dipping is the best for fried chicken!

If you are fully immersing your chicken to deep-fry it, get the oil heating in a large dutch oven on the stove over medium-high heat or in a deep-fryer if you have one, before you begin breading the chicken. If you are going to fry the chicken in a large cast-iron skillet, wait to heat the oil until your chicken is prepared so it doesn't get too hot (and smoke or start a kitchen fire). Once your oil is hot enough for frying, you can begin cooking your chicken.

If you're frying the chicken in a skillet, use about an inch of oil and fry chicken for about 6 minutes on each side (12 minutes total). If you're using a dutch oven on the stove-top, like I do, make sure you immerse the frying basket in the oil before you add the chicken so it doesn't stick to the basket. Fry the chicken for about 12 minutes, keeping the heat on medium-high to maintain the temperature of the oil. For both of these methods, heat oil to about 375°F. If you don't have an appropriate thermometer for this, a couple easy ways to ensure your oil is hot enough is to either drop a couple popcorn kernels in the oil - they'll pop when the oil's hot enough for frying - or place a wooden spoon handle in the oil - if bubbles run up the handle, the oil's hot enough. If you're using a deep-fryer, follow its directions for use.

Once the chicken is fried (you may have to do 2-3 batches - the chicken really plumps up from the brining and double-breading, so you won't be able to fit a lot of pieces in your deep-frying container), drain it on a paper-towel covered plate let it rest for 5-10 minutes before serving. Then prepare to be amazed at how moist, tender, and delicious this chicken is. SO GOOD. (Yes, I'm stealing that tag from KFC because this friend chicken is so much better than KFC's. And I feel I have a right to make that claim, having worked at KFC for 5 - yes, 5! - years.)

I served the chicken with the most delicious Warm Potato Salad, taken from a Company's Coming cookbook entitled Choosing Sides. Of course I've put my own twist on it, adding some ingredients to increase the flavour. Again, this recipe is for 2 generous portions - double it if you're serving 4-6 people. Here's the recipe and method:

Warm Potato Salad

Ingredients

1 lb (half a bag) baby potatoes, quartered

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1-2 tsp cajun seasoning

1/2 large red pepper, cut lengthwise

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup sour cream

1 large clove garlic

2-4 sliced green onions

2-4 bacon slices, cooked crisp and crumbled

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Method

Preheat oven to 400°F

Place red pepper cut side down on a pie plate and place in oven on top rack, roasting for 25-10 minutes, until tender. The skin will turn black in spots; this is fine. When red pepper is done, place in a small bowl and cover with saran wrap. Let sweat for about 10 minutes, until cool enough to handle. Then remove and discard the skin. The skin should just peel right off. Chop the pepper.

Toss cut potatoes with olive oil and cajun seasoning until coated. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet with sides (to prevent spillage). Place in oven with red pepper, but on the bottom rack and roast until tender, about 30 minutes. When they're almost done (and red pepper is done and taken out of oven), turn off the oven, but leave potatoes in there to keep warm, but for no more than 10 minutes, otherwise they'll dry out.

While potatoes and pepper are roasting, fry bacon in a skillet, cool, and crumble. Or alternately, cut bacon into small pieces before cooking and then you don't have to crumble it afterwards. Combine the bacon pieces with the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. When potatoes and red pepper are done, add them to the bowl, combine well, and serve immediately, while still warm. Delish! Makes a perfect side for fried chicken.

Also, if you're concerned about the fat content of this meal, use low-fat mayonnaise and sour cream for the salad and call it good. Some foods just have to be fatty to taste their best! And trust me, this food is worth every gram of fat in it.