CHICKEN FRIED CHICKEN WITH PAN GRAVY

Steps:

• 1. Pound chicken breasts between two pieces of cling wrap with a meat tenderizer or a rolling pin until they are about 1/4 inch thick.
• 2. I like to cut my large pieces into smaller ones for easier flipping in the frying pan and to make plate friendly portion sizes. I cut the large pieces into 3 small ones. Or leave them monster huge. It's up to you. Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper.
• 3. In a shallow dish combine the flour, garlic powder, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper and cayenne pepper (the seasoning amount is just a estimates) so feel free to add more or less to your liking. In another shallow dish combine the milk and egg. Beat the egg with a fork or whisk until it's completely combined with milk.
• 4. Set up your assembly line. 1. chicken 2. wet mixture 3. dry mixture 4. a clean plate for a coated chicken Dip the chicken in the wet mixture, then the dry mixture, wet then dry again. Each piece will be dipped 4 times before making it to the clean plate at the end.
• 5. Heat the canola oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Use enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan, but not completely cover the chicken when it's added. Make sure it's good and hot before adding the chicken. Don't use high heat for the oil or it will burn the coating of the chicken before the inside cooks through. Fry the chicken in batches for about 3-31/2 minutes per side. When you flip it, the coating should be golden and crispy. If it's not, it's not ready to flip. Place the cooked pieces on a paper towel lined plate. The finished chicken should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165
• 6. After frying all the of the chicken , pour off the oil into a measuring cup, keeping as many of the brown bits in the pan as you can. Put about 1/4 cup of the oil back into the pan and add 1/3 cup flour, whisking to make a roux. Continue whisking the oil/flour mixture, scraping the brown bits up and continue cooking until the roux is a nice golden brown color.
• 7. Slowly add the milk to the roux, whisking constantly until all the milk has been combined. Add additional milk until the gravy is the consistency that you like. Then season, season, season with salt and pepper. Use lots of pepper and salt to taste. If you don't add enough seasoning , the gravy will just taste like liquid flour which is just plain yucky.
• 8. Serve with a side of mashed potatoes and slather the chicken and taters with the pan gravy.