Buttermilk Fried Chicken

The CrossHatch white Rhone blend is sunshine in a bottle. The Viognier and Marsanne were both picked on the same day and co-fermented together creating a truly complex unique wine. The Viognier adds aromas and flavors of apricot and honey while the Marsanne adds a balancing minerality and acidity. Drink our 2014 CrossHatch with some fried chicken at a summer picnic.

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken cut into 8 pieces

Brine

1 qt. buttermilk
1 c. water
1/8 c. kosher salt
1 tbsp. Creole seasoning
1 tbsp. hot sauce
1 tbsp. Sriracha hot sauce
1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 c. honey
1 tsp. Hungarian paprika
a few sprigs of thyme

coating

3 c. flour
3 tsp. baking powder
3 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. Creole seasoning
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly grated black pepper
1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cayenne
1/4 tsp. paprika
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 cups buttermilk
vegetable oil for frying (you need enough to come about 1/3 of the way up the pot or 2 inches)
kosher salt

Directions

1. For the brine combine all the ingredients for the brine except the buttermilk in a small pot and heat over medium, dissolving all the salt and honey. Remove from heat and cool by adding ice cubes and stirring. In a large mixing bowl combine buttermilk and cooled seasoned water. Rinse chicken and pat dry. Divide all pieces of chicken between two large ziplock bags as well as half of the brining liquid in each. Let sit in the refrigerator overnight.

2. Rinse the chicken under cold water and pat dry. Let the chicken come to room temperature for half an hour to two hours, on a parchment lined baking sheet covered with paper towels. (this is important in order to cook the chicken all the way through when frying)

3. Preheat oven to 350°. Meanwhile mix all of the ingredients for the coating together in a large bowl, transferring half to a second bowl. Fill a third bowl with the 2 cups of buttermilk. For easy assembly set everything in order: chicken, flour coating, buttermilk, 2nd bowl of flour coating, wax paper lined baking sheet for the coated chicken.

4. Pour the oil into your pot. It should come at least two inches and no more than 1/3 of the way up the side of the pot. Turn the heat to low, clipping a frying/candy thermometer to the side of your pot.

5. Dredge each piece in the coating, brush off all excess, dip into the buttermilk, and then into the second bowl of coating, and brush off excess again.

6. Turn the oil up to high and let it come to about 350° F. Let the coated chicken sit so that the coating will thicken while the oil gets hot. When it reaches temperature, very carefully place 4 pieces of chicken at a time in the hot oil and fry, adjusting the temperature as needed to maintain a frying temperature between 310° -325° F. Fry dark meat first, as it takes longer. Fry the chicken for about 13-20 minutes, moving the chicken gently after the first five to prevent sticking and burning on the bottom. Be careful to monitor your chicken, watching the oil temperature closely and not letting the chicken get too dark.

7. Remove chicken from the oil with a slotted metal spoon when it is golden brown and place it on a cooling rack over a paper towel lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Check the internal temperature with an instant read thermometer, it should read 160ºF. If it is lower than that, it must be finished in the oven. Fry the second batch and then place it on the rack. You can keep the first batch in the oven at 250º while the second batch is frying.

Serves: 4

Adapted from Local Milk