Best Pats Southern Fried Chicken Recipes

REAL SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a shallow bowl, whisk 2 cups buttermilk, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Add chicken; turn to coat. Refrigerate, covered, overnight., In an electric skillet or deep fryer, heat oil to 375°. Meanwhile, place remaining buttermilk in a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, whisk flour, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika and remaining salt and pepper. Place half of flour mixture in another shallow bowl (for a second coat of breading). Drain chicken, discarding marinade; pat chicken dry. Dip in flour mixture to coat both sides; shake off excess. Dip in buttermilk, allowing excess to drain off. For the second coat of breading, dip chicken in remaining flour mixture, patting to help coating adhere., Fry chicken, a few pieces at a time, 4-5 minutes on each side or until browned and juices run clear. Drain on paper towels.

BEST CHICKEN PATTIES

Steps:

• Combine chicken, onion, parsley, egg, garlic, sea salt, and pepper in a bowl; mix well. Add mayonnaise and stir to combine; the mixture will be quite soft.
• Place flour in a shallow bowl. Drop large spoonfuls of the chicken mixture into the flour. Roll to coat and press gently into patties.
• Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken patties in the hot oil until golden brown and no longer pink in the center, 5 to 7 minutes per side.

SOUTHERN LIVING'S BEST FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Combine 1 tablespoon salt with 3 quarts water in a large bowl or container. Add chicken, cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. Drain, rinse with cold water and pat dry.
• Stir together remaining 1 teaspoon salt and the black pepper. Sprinkle half the mixture evenly over chicken.
• In a large sealable plastic bag, combine remaining pepper mixture and flour. Add 2 pieces chicken to bag and shake well to coat. Remove chicken pieces, shaking off extra flour, and set aside. Repeat with remaining chicken.
• Take a large (10- or 12-inch) cast-iron skillet or chicken fryer, for which you have a lid, and fit with a candy or deep-frying thermometer. Add oil and bacon drippings and heat to 360 degrees over medium heat; the oil will ripple and possibly give off a few wisps of smoke.
• Using tongs, immediately add chicken pieces, skin side down (work in batches if necessary to avoid crowding pan). The oil will drop to about 325 degrees, where it should stay; adjust heat so that oil is bubbling gently around the pieces. Cover and cook 6 minutes; uncover and cook 9 minutes. Turn chicken pieces; cover and cook 6 minutes. Uncover and cook another 5 to 9 minutes, depending on size of pieces. If necessary for even browning, turn pieces over a few times toward the end.
• Drain on paper towels or paper bags. Let cool at least 20 minutes before serving.

BEST SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a shallow bowl, beat eggs and milk. In another bowl, combine flour and seasonings. Dip chicken pieces in egg mixture, then in flour mixture. , In a large skillet; brown chicken in oil on both sides. Cover and cook the chicken over low heat for 45 minutes or until juices run clear. Remove chicken from the skillet; keep warm. Reserve 1/4 cup drippings in skillet. , For gravy, stir in the flour, salt and pepper. Cook and stir over medium heat for 5 minutes or until browned. Combine milk and water; add to skillet. Bring to a boil; boil and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Add browning sauce if desired. Serve with chicken. Garnish with oregano if desired.

SOUTHERN PAN-FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• The night before serving: Place chicken in a large bowl and set aside. In a large pitcher, combine kosher salt with 6 cups of water and stir until the salt has dissolved. Pour salted water over chicken pieces until they are submerged. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• In the morning, drain chicken pieces and rinse chicken and bowl. Return chicken to bowl and cover with buttermilk. Cover and refrigerate for 8 to 12 hours.
• About 1¼ hours before serving, combine the lard, butter and ham in a large heavy skillet. Cook over low heat, skimming as needed, until ham is lightly browned, 30 to 45 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove ham and brown bits from fat. Increase heat to medium high to heat the fat to 335 degrees.
• In a shallow bowl combine flour, cornstarch, salt and pepper; mix well. Dredge chicken pieces thoroughly in flour mixture, then pat well to remove excess flour. Working in batches (do not crowd pan), place chicken pieces skin side down in fat. Cook 8 to 10 minutes on each side, until chicken is golden brown and cooked through. Drain on crumpled paper towels. Serve hot, warm, at room temperature or cold.

SOUTHERN MARINATED FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• For the house seasoning: Combine garlic powder, onion powder and seasoning salt in a small bowl.
• For the chicken: Wash chicken pieces and pat dry with paper towels. Place in a large bowl. Combine 3 tablespoons house seasoning with 1 teaspoon black pepper in a small bowl, then generously sprinkle each piece of chicken with the seasoning mixture. Place in a plastic bag, seal and refrigerate for 24 hours.
• Remove chicken from bag. Add about 3/4-inch frying oil to a cast-iron skillet and heat over medium-high heat until temperature reaches about 350 degrees F. Line a plate with paper towels.
• Meanwhile, combine 2 tablespoons house seasoning with the flour in a shallow pan (save remaining house seasoning for another use). Roll chicken in flour in batches, dusting off excess, and place in skillet. Turn heat down to medium to prevent burning. Brown chicken on all sides, turning with tongs, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat (avoid touching bone) registers 165 degrees F. Remove chicken to lined plate. Repeat with remaining chicken.
• Use a 5-ounce scoop to portion out some 3-Cheese Macaroni in the center of a plate. Add 3 tablespoons Sweet Potato Apple Chutney. Cut a Collard Green Roll in half on the bias, and place each piece against the scoop of macaroni. Place fried chicken pieces against the front of the macaroni and cheese scoop. Pour a little of the pot liquor from the greens around the plate, then grab your favorite hot sauce and dig in! (Repeat with remaining ingredients to make 8 more plates.)
• For the house seasoning: Combine garlic powder, onion powder and seasoning salt in a small bowl.
• For the macaroni and cheese: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish and set aside.
• Place cooked macaroni in a large bowl. Toss macaroni with white pepper, 1/8 cup house seasoning and 1 cup Cheddar. Set aside.
• Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, being careful not to burn. Whisk flour into melted butter to make a roux. Continue to cook, whisking constantly, until a smooth paste, about 2 minutes. Turn heat to low and slowly add milk, whisking continuously, then allow to simmer for about 5 minutes.
• Add the American cheese and cream cheese in batches, whisking, until melted and blended. Add 1 1/2 cups Cheddar, whisking until blended, then remove from heat. Add 1/8 cup house seasoning to cheese sauce (save remaining house seasoning for another use). Quickly whisk in the eggs until combined.
• Spread macaroni evenly into prepared baking dish. Add cheese sauce, tossing, and stirring to coat macaroni well with sauce. Top with remaining cup Cheddar. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake until cheese crust is browned, 5 to 10 minutes more. Allow to sit 15 minutes before serving.
• Melt butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add sweet potatoes, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and clove. Add apple cider, stirring, then allow to simmer for about 10 minutes. Add apples, red peppers, brown sugar and 1 cup water and continue to cook, adding more water if needed, until sweet potatoes are soft but still firm and mixture is thick and syrupy, about 20 minutes. Stir in raisins and bourbon and continue to cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
• For the house seasoning: Combine garlic powder, onion powder and seasoning salt in a small bowl.
• For the rolls: Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add garlic, celery, onions and green and red peppers and sweat, about 4 minutes. Add chopped collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, jalapenos, smoked salt, baking soda, smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, 1/4 cup house seasoning and enough water to cover greens (save remaining house seasoning for another use). Cook greens until tender, 2 1/2 hours. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
• Strain pot liquor from greens and reserve. Place pot liquor in a shallow pan and heat over medium heat. Carefully add whole collard green leaves and simmer until leaves soften, about 3 minutes. Remove leaves one at a time and place on a flat surface. Flatten a leaf and top with 1 scoop drained greens right in the middle of the leaf. Fold the sides of the leaf over the greens and roll the leaf into a log. Repeat process with remaining leaves and filling.

CLASSIC SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 200 F and place a rack in a large baking pan.
• In a medium bowl, combine the milk and eggs. Whisk to blend well.
• In a large heavy-duty resealable plastic food storage bag, combine the flour, 2 tablespoons salt, and pepper. Seal and shake to combine.
• Dip the chicken pieces in the milk and egg mixture and let excess drip off into the bowl. Set already dipped pieces aside on a plate until you have three or four.
• Add the dipped chicken pieces to the bag of seasoned flour.
• Seal the bag and shake well to coat the chicken pieces thoroughly.
• Remove to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken pieces.
• Heat the oil in a deep, heavy skillet to 350 F. While it's heating up, set aside a large serving plate lined with paper towels.
• Fry the chicken, a few pieces at a time, for about 10 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and thoroughly cooked. Be careful not to put too many chicken pieces in at once-even if they can comfortably fit-since this will dramatically drop the temperature of the oil, affecting the crispness of the final product. Note that chicken breasts will take a little less time than dark meat pieces.
• With a slotted spoon, move the done chicken pieces onto the paper towel-lined platter to drain. Sprinkle immediately with salt.
• Transfer the drained and seasoned chicken to the prepared pan with a rack. Keep warm in the preheated oven while frying subsequent batches. Depending on the size of your pan, this recipe will require about 3 to 4 batches.

PAT'S SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Cut up the chicken, setting aside the back, neck, and organ meat to make stock for other recipes. Cut the last joint off the wing tips too and add to chicken parts for stock. (Obviously, you can buy a whole fryer already cut up if you wish. You can trim excessive skin and some fat but leave the main part of the skin on each piece of chicken!
• Carefully dry each piece of chicken with a paper towel. Pour 1 cup of flour into a paper bag and dust each piece of chicken, one at a time, by shaking it in the bag. Set all this chicken aside on a tray and let it sit until the "whiteness" fades (about 30 minutes).
• Beat the eggs with a fork or whisk in a wide shallow bowl. Add the buttermilk to the eggs and beat for another few seconds and set aside.
• On a large platter or plate, mix together the two cups of flour, baking soda, pepper, salt, basil, Old Bay and oregano; set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 375°F.
• On the stovetop, in a large skillet, heat the Crisco until it is very hot, about 375° (Your chicken should really crackle and sizzle when it goes into the oil -- if not, then the oil is too cold!).
• "Drench" each piece of chicken in the buttermilk/egg mix, allow it to mostly drip off, and then "dredge" it in the flour mix until it is evenly coated. As each piece is coated, place it into the hot oil. DO NOT CROWD THE CHICKEN! You may have to make two or three batches, depending upon your skillet size, so don't drench and dredge until you are ready to fry each piece.
• Fry the chicken to a golden brown on each side, turning it once. As the chicken comes out of the skillet, place each piece on a baking sheet (make sure that it has sides -- some grease will drain off the chicken as it bakes).
• When all the chicken has been fried up and placed on the baking sheet, place it into the pre-heated 375° oven UNCOVERED for 40 minutes.
• After the chicken comes out of the oven, allow it to "rest" for 10-15 minutes and then serve.

PAT'S SPICY FRIED WINGS

Steps:

• In a small bowl whisk together seasoning salt, red pepper flakes, black pepper, cayenne pepper, poultry seasoning, and lemon pepper. Reserve 2 tablespoons in a separate bowl.
• Rinse chicken wings in cold water and place into a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle the wings evenly with the seasoning, and let them marinate, covered and chilled, for 1 hour.
• Whisk eggs, hot sauce, red pepper flakes, black pepper, and cayenne pepper into a medium size mixing bowl. Reserve. Put the flour into a shallow dish or pie plate.
• In a large deep-fryer or large Dutch oven heat oil to 350 degrees F on a deep-fat thermometer.
• Dredge chicken wings into the egg mixture then into the flour. Place wings 3 at a time into the hot oil and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, turning occasionally, until cooked through and golden brown. Remove to a paper towel lined sheet tray. Make sure oil returns to temperature before adding the next batch. Sprinkle the wings with the reserved seasoning for extra hot wings.
• Serve with Spicy Dipping Sauce.
• Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl.