Homemade Fried Chicken Tenders – Rachael Ray

January 24, 2008 at 10:44 am (American Food, Rachael Ray, chicken) ()

Ingredients

  • 4 cups buttermilk
  • 2 cloves garlic, grated
  • A few dashes of hot sauce
  • 4 tablespoons (a large palmful) fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
  • 4 tablespoons (a large palmful) fresh dill, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons (about a palmful) fresh chives, chopped
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 pounds chicken tenderloins
  • Canola oil
  • 2 cups flour, plus more as needed
  • 8 to 12 scallions, depending on size, trimmed of roots
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • Assorted sliced vegetables, such as seedless cucumbers, celery and carrots

Preparation

In a large bowl, mix together the buttermilk, garlic, hot sauce, parsley, dill, chives and lemon juice. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Season the chicken with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and place in a shallow dish or large disposable plastic bag. Pour about 1/3 of the buttermilk ranch over the chicken pieces then cover the dish with plastic wrap or seal the bag and marinate for 10 minutes or up to an hour in the refrigerator. Reserve the remaining buttermilk dressing in the fridge.
To cook up the chicken, place a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat. Add an inch of canola oil to your pan and get it hot. Place two high-sided dishes on the counter and fill one with flour and the other with 1/3 of your reserved buttermilk ranch. Dip the trimmed scallions into the buttermilk ranch, then into the flour; then back into the buttermilk ranch and back into the flour. Once they’re double-coated, shallow fry them in the oil until they are golden brown on each side, then place on a paper towel lined plate to drain. Repeat the process with the remaining scallions.
When the scallions are finished frying, repeat the process with all the chicken strips, adding more flour to the dish as needed.
While the last batch of chicken tenders is cooking up, stir the sour cream into the remaining reserved buttermilk ranch and transfer it to a serving dish. Put your chicken strips and scallions in a bucket and serve the dipping ranch and sliced veggies alongside.

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Fried Chicken

January 13, 2007 at 4:42 pm (American Food) ()

Fried Chicken
Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence

1 (3 to 4 pound) chicken, cut up into 10 pieces
Kosher salt
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
2 teaspoons cayenne
Freshly ground black pepper
1 quart buttermilk
2 tablespoons hot chili sauce (recommended: Srirachi)
Peanut oil, for frying
1/4 bunch fresh thyme
3 big sprigs fresh rosemary
1/4 bunch fresh sage
1/2 head garlic, smashed, husk still attached
Lemon wedges, for serving
Put the chicken pieces into a large bowl. Cover the chicken with water by 1 inch; add 1 tablespoon of salt for each quart of water used. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight.
In a large shallow platter, mix the flour, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and cayenne until well blended; season generously with salt and pepper. In another platter combine the buttermilk and hot sauce with a fork and season with salt and pepper.
Drain the chicken and pat it dry. Dredge the pieces, a few at a time, in the flour mixture, then dip them into the buttermilk; dredge them again in the seasoned flour. Set aside and let the chicken rest while you prepare the oil.
Put about 3 inches of oil into a large deep pot; it should not come up more than half way. Add the thyme, rosemary, sage, and garlic to the cool oil and heat over medium-high heat until the oil registers 350 to 365 degrees F on one of those clip-on deep-fry thermometers. The herbs and garlic will perfume the oil with their flavor as the oil comes up to temperature.
Once the oil has reached 350 to 365 degrees F, working in batches, carefully add the chicken pieces 3 or 4 at a time. Fry, turning the pieces once, until golden brown and cooked through, about 12 minutes.

Total cooking time should be about 30 minutes. When the chicken is done, take a big skimmer and remove the chicken pieces and herbs from the pot, shaking off as much oil as you can, and lay it on a tea towel or brown paper bag to soak up the oil. Sprinkle all over with more salt and a dusting of cracked black pepper. Repeat with the remaining chicken pieces. Once all the chicken is fried, scatter the fried herbs and garlic over the top. Serve hot, with big lemon wedges.

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