Fried Chicken

[woodburner]

My dilema, I purchased some frozen chicken wings, that I could deep fry and bring to a friends house, as a snack.

Defrosted them according to the package directions, and coated with all purpose flour, and some spices. No, not thirteen like the colonel.

I was faithfull regarding getting the cooking oil up to about 365f, and then dropped about 10 wings into the hot oil, and cooked for about 8 minutes

I eventually finished about 30 wings in three seperate batches, each time letting the oil, come back up to temperature before the next 10 wings went into the oil.

While the chicken seemed to cooked to perfection, the outside was not nearly as crispy and crunchy as I would like, soft mouth feel on some pieces.

Was the oil not hot enough?

Maybe I should let the chicken air dry longer before frying to help rid it of any excessive moisture?

The problem was easily fixed by putting the Anchor Bar sauce on after frying and finishing in a 450f oven to crisp them up, but requiring an extra step.

Thanks for any help.

woodburner

[Malawry]

When I fry chicken, I brine it overnight, then I soak it in buttermilk for about 5 hours. Then I drain it and shake it in a sack of seasoned flour. I let the cold chicken come up to room temp uncovered, so it'll dry out and cook evenly. I don't pile the pieces up--lay them out in a single layer. It helps to drop the pieces in the oil one or two at a time--but I don't have a fryer basket so the convenience of dropping them all at once is lost to me. I use a big big pot of oil and require almost no recovery time for the chicken when I fry it since there's so much oil. It's crispy good.

[lambfries]

Flour on hot wings?

[ellencho]

Maybe you could try frying them longer? Maybe 12-14 minutes? Also, Cook's Illustrated recommends using corn starch instead of flour. Maybe that'll help with crispness next time? I used corn starch a couple weeks ago and my wings were pretty good.

[woodburner]

Flour on hot wings?

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No.

Wings were dredged in flour and spices, and then deep fried, and then sauced.

Did I do something wrong there??

woodburner

[woodburner]

Maybe you could try frying them longer? Maybe 12-14 minutes?  Also, Cook's Illustrated recommends using corn starch instead of flour.  Maybe that'll help with crispness next time? I used corn starch a couple weeks ago and my wings were pretty good.

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I'll report back. That makes sense.

thanks

woodburner

[NulloModo]

Flour on hot wings?

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No.

Wings were dredged in flour and spices, and then deep fried, and then sauced.

Did I do something wrong there??

woodburner

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I think it depends on what you are going for. A traditional buffalo recipe doesn't include dredging the wings in flour, they just go into the deep fryer skin on and that becomes the crispy bits. However, if you are trying for something else...

[TheFoodTutor]

lambfries is from Buffalo, and therefore is a purist. When we do wings we simply fry them until the skin becomes crisp, which happens when the fat is rendered out of the skin, and then toss them in Frank's and melted butter. Dredging the wings first means that the oil will penetrate the flour, rather than render the skin, and you may get crisp flour bits but not crisp skin. And then the crisp flour bits will just get soggy when you toss them in the sauce.

I really don't prefer to flour my hot wings, since the flour technique adds both carbs and fat to the finished product, but you don't get a flavor benefit in exchange, so I don't think it's worth it. But you can try batches both ways and see which you prefer.

[tryska]

*lol* i gotta admit, i was thinking the same thing as err....lambfries. sup, hog?

and FG - that's exactly how i do it. sometimes adding another more peppery hot sauce, if i want it a little bit hotter.

but i think, despite Upstate Purist notions regarding buffalo wings, i don't think that's what woodburner was originally going for.

as for tips, i would guess that it was a combo of your oil not being hot enough (taking into account the cooldown from the meat going in) as well as overcrowding. Maybe next time try heating the oil to 385, before droppign the meat in? that way it could bring the temp down to a more manageable 375 once all is said and done.

[TheFoodTutor]

You are correct, Tryska, regarding fries/hog. To everyone else, this is a reference to knowing us from elsewhere in virtual space.

Anyway, higher temp oil might be a good suggestion, but my fryer only goes up to 375, and that's how hot I set it for wings. I have a small-batch deep fryer, so cold or frozen wings considerably reduce the temperature of the oil, even if I close the lid immediately. I may experiment with a flour-dredged batch and see what it takes to crisp them.

I have had breaded wings with Buffalo-style hot sauce, and they can be good sometimes. Very different from Anchor Bar wings, but tasty.

[tryska]

You are correct, Tryska, regarding fries/hog. To everyone else, this is a reference to knowing us from elsewhere in virtual space.

Anyway, higher temp oil might be a good suggestion, but my fryer only goes up to 375, and that's how hot I set it for wings. I have a small-batch deep fryer, so cold or frozen wings considerably reduce the temperature of the oil, even if I close the lid immediately. I may experiment with a flour-dredged batch and see what it takes to crisp them.

I have had breaded wings with Buffalo-style hot sauce, and they can be good sometimes. Very different from Anchor Bar wings, but tasty.

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most of the recipes i read for fried chicken in general are for 375 too. i was thinking those things went higher than that.

but the only place i've had breaded buffalo wings were hooters. (not on purpose tho)

[phifly04]

Woodburner--If your going for crisp skinned wings without having to do the extra baking step i would recommmend no flour,no corn starch 375F degree oil and a longer cooking time of around12-15 minutes-i personally cant stand when my wings are not crispy

[TheFoodTutor]

Hooters? Bleh. I do remember from the one time I had their wings that theirs are breaded, though.

But if you want to try breaded wings with better scenery, you can try Woofs on Piedmont, across from where the Gold Club used to be. It's a gay sports bar that caters to men with a "bear" body type. The wings are breaded and then drenched in sauce and butter, and the breading starts to fall off a bit so it can wallow in the pools of butter and hot sauce. They're not bad, especially if you're drinking.

[tryska]

hmmmm....woofs so i can have wings with bears.

we should make that a gatherin'.

[Toliver]

I think 375° seems to be the magic number when it comes to frying. I seem to recall that when we deep fried our turkey, that was the optimum temp. Lower than that and you run the risk of the food absorbing the oil.

[woodburner]

lambfries is from Buffalo, and therefore is a purist. When we do wings we simply fry them until the skin becomes crisp, which happens when the fat is rendered out of the skin, and then toss them in Frank's and melted butter. Dredging the wings first means that the oil will penetrate the flour, rather than render the skin, and you may get crisp flour bits but not crisp skin. And then the crisp flour bits will just get soggy when you toss them in the sauce.

I really don't prefer to flour my hot wings, since the flour technique adds both carbs and fat to the finished product, but you don't get a flavor benefit in exchange, so I don't think it's worth it. But you can try batches both ways and see which you prefer.

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And so we will, give this another try as you suggest sans the flour.

a buffaloite and no anchor bar sauce...

woodburner

[NulloModo]

I have had the anchor bar sauce, and personally, I don't think it deserves the rep of ultimate buffalo wing sauce (although I will give the Anchor Bar mad props for inventing the addictive little things).

Personally, for mild hot wings my preference is a bottle of Texas Pete, some butter, and just a little bit of garlic and black pepper to taste. The garlic and black pepper are not traditional, but give it a nice full kick.

[woodburner]

I have had the anchor bar sauce, and personally, I don't think it deserves the rep of ultimate buffalo wing sauce (although I will give the Anchor Bar mad props for inventing the addictive little things). 

Personally, for mild hot wings my preference is a bottle of Texas Pete, some butter, and just a little bit of garlic and black pepper to taste.  The garlic and black pepper are not traditional, but give it a nice full kick.

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Wing sauce compares to bbq sauce, regarding flavor and taste. I doubt there is any ultimate in any sauce, but my main criteria for sauce is that it never hides or diminishes the flavor, but rather marries upon which it is put.

woodburner