Making fried chicken crispy

[gfweb]

Lots of variations in recipes said to make for crispy FC

 

-Double fry (to drive off moisture?)

-Potato starch/flour coating

-vodka in batter

-Egg whites but no yolks in batter

-Fry to >170F meat temp (so more water is eliminated by overcooking?)

- Add baking soda

 

And how do they get that rock hard coating on Applebee's nuggets?

 

Your thoughts?

 

[IndyRob]

I like battered, like they do at Willie Mae's Scotch House in NOLA.

 

Equal parts flour and cornstarch (by volume), a lot of black pepper, salt, some cayenne and paprika.  And some baking powder.

 

Mix with water to a crepe batter consistency (thinner may be better, I'm still working this out).

 

Season chicken pieces with salt and cayenne before dipping.

 

Beyond being very crispy, it's also easier and cleaner than other methods.

 

There's just one bowl for the batter.  You don't need a three step frying station.

 

Your oil will stay cleaner without a bunch of loose flour coming off the chicken.

 

If this is not crispy enough, roll the battered pieces in crushed corn flakes - but forget about the clean oil.

 

Edit:  I'm still trying to work out doneness.  Should I pull the pieces from the oil as soon as they float?  Is that an accurate indication?  Sometimes that occurs earlier than I would have thought.

 

Another tip is smaller pieces are better.  They make for a better proportion of coating to meat.  Wings are great.

Edited October 23, 2022 by IndyRob (log)

[JoNorvelleWalker]

EverCrisp will keep fried foods crispy till the end of time.

 

https://modernistpantry.com/products/evercrisp-breader-batter-boost.html

 

 

[CookBot]

On 10/23/2022 at 10:41 PM, JoNorvelleWalker said:

EverCrisp will keep fried foods crispy till the end of time.

 

https://modernistpantry.com/products/evercrisp-breader-batter-boost.html

 

I wonder if Popeye's is using Evercrisp (or its equivalent) in its breading?  The chicken I get from them stays crisp for a really, really long time.

 

 

[KennethT]

4 hours ago, CookBot said:

 

I wonder if Popeye's is using Evercrisp (or its equivalent) in its breading?  The chicken I get from them stays crisp for a really, really long time.

 

 

I wouldn't be surprised.  The ingredient list for most large fast food chains looks more like a chemistry set than anything else.  Probably labeled "modified food starch" which encompasses a TON of products.