The best fried chicken

[Aerows]

Rate your choices and specify if you pick home made or other to describe why it rocks.

18 votes, 0 passes | Time left: Unlimited
	Popeye's
	7 (39%)
	KFC Original recipe
	2 (11%)
	Church's
	0 (0%)
	Homemade
	7 (39%)
	Other
	2 (11%)
	0 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
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[Aerows]

1. I like KFC Original

because chicken soaked in buttermilk is AWESOME.

[trof]

2. Chez Helen

AKA Miz t.
Her mom's recipe.
Handed down from her grandmother.
Can't beat it.

[Aerows]

3. I love fried chicken

I've had it homemade, and from every place you can imagine. I still like mine with a buttermilk soak.

[blogslut]

4. CORNFLAKE!

[Tom Kitten]

16. I use sugar frosted flakes

as soon as the chicken hits the hot oil the sugar caramelizes and seals the chicken and the juices are left to cook inside and it is nice and moist and sweet, and the best thing is it's even better cold...perfect for picnics!

[AwakeAtLast]

45. HAHAHAHA!

Classic!

[Lochloosa]

5. Johnny Harris restaurant in Savannah, GA.

http://johnnyharris.com

Oh My God.

[NightWatcher]

9. that's because they have a bunch of local grandmothers locked in the kitchen

I'm actually ashamed to say that The Lady and Sons' chicken was not half bad either.

[Lochloosa]

10. As long as they have good cots for them I'm ok with that

Never tried the Lady but it had to be good.

[aikoaiko]

39. Yep. Darn good.

[kwassa]

6. My wife's uncle.

Fried chicken to die for.

and his fried fish is heavenly. I don't know why it is so good, he is just an amazing cook. And I try to avoid eating all fried food, I am a total sucker when it comes to his.

[politicat]

7. Maybe our highly biased opinion, but...

This is the recipe that is making us happy. It's not low fat, but it's relatively low carb and easy to make. Also, technically paleo, for people that care about that.

6 pieces of chicken. The best are boneless, skin-on thighs, but those can be hard to find and I suck at deboning chicken, so most of the time, we use boneless, skinless thighs.
3-4 TB arrowroot powder or tapioca starch
2 TB ranch seasoning of your choice. (Penzey's blend is excellent; Hidden Valley if that's what you got)
1/2-1 tsp cayenne (vary to taste)
1/4 cup fat of choice -- we tend to use butter or ghee, but this works with coconut oil, schmaltz, tallow and lard (I haven't tried vegetable oil or olive oil.) Schmaltz is best, but hard to come by; I prefer butter (everything is better with browned butter); spouse prefers ghee or lard.

Mix the powder and the seasonings in a zip top bag while letting the fat get hot in a large skillet over medium high heat. Pat the chicken dry, then drop a dried piece into the coating. Shake one piece at a time to coat, shake off extra without disturbing the base coat, then drop in the hot pan.

Wait at least 6 minutes while the bottoms get nicely brown. Yes, this will spatter. Use a spatter screen -- don't cover. That way lies gummy chicken. If it takes 10 minutes to brown, your heat is too low. Flip without disturbing the browned base if possible; repeat for the other side. Make sure interior hits 160 with a probe thermometer; usually about 15 minutes total. Enjoy.

[mainer]

8. Home made. Definitely.

Must have skin on. Rub On salt, paprika, onion and garlic powder and refrigerate overnight. Dip in whole milk buttermilk and egg, dredge in seasoned flour, fry in peanut oil.

Don't soak too long in buttermilk -- doesn't get as crispy.

[Brigid]

11. Oh, come on!

Can anything beat home made fried chicken?

[Solly Mack]

12. Mine

Seriously.

[GoCubsGo]

13. I wanted to vote for homemade, but...

...I've had some homemade that wasn't so great. It all depends on who makes it. At least the chain stuff is relatively consistent.

[Marthe48]

14. I keep trying recipes

I got breading my sister-in-law left at my mother-in-law's apt. I breaded and fried boneless chicken breasts and it was so darn good. I asked her for the recipe and learned it was supposed to be baked. But when I make the breading, I fry the chicken:

Breading:
¾ C. Crushed Ritz Crackers (about 16)

½ C. Grated Parmesan Cheese

1 T. Dried Parsley Flakes

½ t. Garlic Powder

1/8 t. Black Pepper

Chicken Breasts

Coat the chicken breasts, fry in vegetable oil, medium high heat, 6 minutes on a side, remove to paper-towel lined plate.

[Miles Archer]

15. Home made, and the SECRET is...

...you have to BRINE it first.

Brining works especially well for shrimp fried rice, too. No chewy shrimp.

[wyldwolf]

19. we use dill pickle juice

[TeamPooka]

17. My mom's friend Mrs. Barrett makes the best fried chicken I've ever tasted. Mom agrees.

[Sherman A1]

18. it's Lee's Chicken for me

I believe it is a local or regional chain. Just had some the other day and it's great.

In the past we went to a nice local restaurant called Halls Ferry Inn, but it closed then the new owner burned it down for the insurance as I recall.

[wyldwolf]

20. In order...

Fast Food:

Popeyes
Church's
Bojangles
KFC Original (but because it's pressure cooked, it gets soggy fast so eat up!)

Best homemade:

Little old lady up the street, staunch Democrat, who pan fries it in crisco with a buttermilk batter. You can feel your arteries hardening just thinking about it.

[ReverendDeuce]

21. Popeye's spicy chicken strips...

I need not explain.

[baldguy]

22. Grandma's.

Whomever that grandma may be.

[Throd]

23. I'm glad there are no Popeye's in my area. I would weigh more.

[Raffi Ella]

24. My Mom makes spicy crunchy good fried chicken.

She uses hot sauce in the mix, it's SO yummy. Popeyes makes some good chicken too though.

[taught_me_patience]

25. The bucket someone invariably brings to a party

best fried chicken is free fried chicken!

[libodem]

26. Corn Flake

[Trajan]

27. Murphy's in Palm Springs

Been there once, with family who swore it was the bestest in the Westest ....

I have not tasted better since ...

[Arkansas Granny]

28. I make some pretty good fried chicken, but my favorite is KFC Extra Crispy.

I don't even need the chicken, just the skin and crispy coating would suit me fine.

[yuiyoshida]

29. El Pollo Loco!!!

Best chicken I have ever eaten. We need some in San Francisco! I had mine in Southern California!

[pinboy3niner]

32. Not for FRIED chicken

Theirs is all fire-grilled.

[yuiyoshida]

34. oh yeah, thats true huh...

well still, best chicken I ever ate!!

[Brother Buzz]

30. ROSCOE’S HOUSE OF CHICKEN AND WAFFLES! Obama: "Outstanding chicken".

[OriginalGeek]

36. That may be good - I have heard of them and wan tto try it

but until I can get out west, Hash House a Go Go does a pretty outstanding chicken and waffle too.

This was so big that next time my daughter and i will just split it and still have plenty for each:



oh yeah, that's bacon peeking out of the waffle and the green stuff on top is fried leeks...

[Xyzse]

31. I prefer small mom & pop hole in the wall operations.

They are ridiculously good.

Home Made, well, with the amount of prep work, grease, dirt and other things that come with cooking fried chicken, it is such a production that it isn't worth it.

Unless I have a dedicated deep fryer, I would not make it.

[hobbit709]

33. Lucy's Fried Chicken here in Austin.

[betsuni]

35. Nagoya style wings are quite delicious

I dry-brine the chicken overnight uncovered in the fridge to get them really dry before frying. Here's a recipe:
Tebasaki Chicken Wings

[Tuesday Afternoon]

37. Gandma's. May she rest in peace.

[Hangingon]

38. Strouds Kansas City nt

[mainer]

40. Some pretty tasty chicken at Lizard's Thicket

I was from out of town, and went there with locals. Really liked the restaurant's fried chicken.

Weird name, but great chicken.

http://www.lizardsthicket.com

[whistler162]

41. I like Sam's Chickenland in Solvay NY

https://samschickenland.ordersnapp.com/home

[Digit]

42. Picnic 'N Chicken of San Diego

It was a long, long time ago but truly unforgettable chicken both fried and barbequed. I moved back to east coast about 1978 and have learned they are no longer in business. The BBQ was so deliciously spicy that you would break out into a sweat, yet the flavor was also somewhat sweet. The perfect balance!

I am old enough now that I need to be kind to my heart....but it was great when I was young!

[LawDeeDah]

43. Homemade By Far.

This is what I do, more or less.

Instead of bread crumbs I scrunch up soda crackers. Its got the bready thing going, its crisp right out of the box and it's got the salt baggage thing going so you put the shaker away.

Swoosh the raw chicken in flour - spiced how yu like, I like onion powder, mayb garlic powder, anything you like. Then dip it in a loose pancake batter. You don't want an inch of pancake on your chicken so the batter has to be rather thin.

Then you roll it in the scrunched up soda crackers - with whatever other seasoning you like ,

and dip into a deep fryer. Or a frying pan.
After they look a nice golden I'm not always sure they are done well enough so I shove the in the oven uncovered for a while to make sure.

[Dirty Socialist]

44. The Wooden Shoe in Minster, OH

Great fried chicken. Moist and crispy. I hear it's cooked in real lard.

[AwakeAtLast]

46. Bojangles

But I can't get it here in Indiana.