“Dish It Your Way” Blogger Challenge Week 1: Fried Chicken

Whether floured or battered, pan or deep-fried, fried chicken is a specialty of the American South but a favorite nationwide. This dish, with its trademark crunch, is most definitely versatile; the only requisite is the bird. Snackers tend to go for chicken tenders and wings, health conscious cooks might “oven-fry” their meals, and other fried chicken fanatics (geniuses) might top their waffles with some. So, dish up your version of fried chicken. It might just become a new classic!

To get you started, check out our Cook’s Country recipe for Extra-Crunchy Fried Chicken — it would make any Southern Grandma proud.

Our test cooks have discovered some helpful tips you may want to keep in mind when frying your chicken:

1. Cut chicken into similar-sized pieces to ensure they all cook at the same rate.
2. After dredging chicken pieces, leave them to rest on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes. This will allow the coating to stick and not become soggy, creating the perfect crispy crust.  
3. Greasy chicken is a result of cold oil. Make sure to heat the oil to 375 degrees before dropping in the chicken (the temperature will drop once the cold chicken hits the hot oil). On the other hand, overheating the oil can result in chicken that is done on the outside but still raw in the middle. Oil should be kept between 300 and 325 degrees during frying.

Posts accepted June 20th- June 29th. Winner announced July 1st.

Click here for details on how to submit and Have fun frying!

—Sacha (@EatingInOrOut)