21 June 2020

Rosemary Brined Fried Chicken

Happy Father's day!  To celebrate, you might just want to consider this recipe...
Ooooh yeah. This is the stuff.  I've tried quite a few fried chicken recipes and this one is 10+/10 all the way!  It's super delicious, an absolute must-make-as-often-as-possible.  As I wrote the recipe out, I realized I had omitted the freshly ground black pepper in the original--not on purpose--and as we loved the results, I'll be leaving out again next time, too.



Ingredients:

for the brine--
1 small yellow onion (or 1/2 of a medium, as I did), sliced thinly
4 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed lightly with the handle of a knife
1 tsp. canola oil
3 T. kosher salt
5 or 6 sprigs of fresh rosemary, around 4-5" long each
4 1/2 c. water
juice from 1 lemon

chicken, coating, and frying--
~4 lbs. chicken drumsticks (or other bone-in pieces)
3 c. all-purpose flour
2 T. paprika
2 T. fine sea salt
2 tsp. cayenne pepper
~2 c. buttermilk (I didn't measure)
oil for frying (I used my usual amount in the deep fryer, which I am not sure of quantity, I just fill it to the fill line)

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan over medium to medium-high heat, stir together onion, garlic, and oil.  After it has cooked for around 30 seconds, stir in the kosher salt.  Let cook, stirring occasionally, until onion becomes translucent, around 4 minutes total.


2. Stir in the rosemary (as best you can), cooking for around 30 seconds to heat it.  Add the water and lemon juice, then increase heat to medium-high.  Stir until salt has dissolved, bring to a simmer, then remove from heat.  Let cool for around 30 min, then place in fridge until chilled.


3. Once brine has chilled, add chicken pieces to a gallon-sized zip-top plastic bag, then pour the brine in.  Close up, squeezing out as much air as possible.  Place bag in a bowl that will allow all the chicken to be in the brine at same time and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, preferably closer to 24 (I went around 22).


4. Set up a rimmed baking sheet with rack over it.  Remove chicken pieces from brine and rinse under cold water, then place on the rack.


5. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, paprika, sea salt, and cayenne.  After whisking, pour half of mixture into a second medium bowl.  Pour buttermilk into a third bowl.

6. Heat oil in a Fry Daddy (or a pan for deep frying) to 350°F.  Coat chicken pieces in first bowl of flour mixture, then dip through buttermilk to coat, and coat again in second bowl of flour mixture.  Place coated pieces back on rack.


7. Fry chicken pieces (do not crowd fryer/pan) for 12-15 minutes, depending on size (12 was great for my smaller pieces, but I went 15 on biggest just to be sure).  Let cool for at least 20 minutes before serving and enjoy (a lot)!!


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