One of the first things I wanted to cook when I initially started preparing the evening meal was fried chicken. Except for getting it at KFC now and again the last time I probably had it was when my Grandmother Jessie prepared it. How hard could it be – hot oil, breaded chicken, some time in the pan and PRESTO!
Well, sort of. I did have one of her cast iron skillets – well seasoned from lots of use – but my fried chicken was horribly greasy. Yuck!! There was much to learn.
After reading a bit on frying and watching several cooking shows – Good Eats and America’s Test Kitchen – and reading a bit in I’m Just Here for the Food there’s a lot more going on than just hot oil.
For starters there’s the method – deep or pan frying. My initial attempt was pan frying like I’d seen grandma make it in an iron skillet but deep frying is another alternative. While you can get a dedicated deep fryer, a dutch oven is a better investment. America’s Test Kitchen recommends this one. At around $50 you can’t beat it and you’ll use it for soups, stews, braising, and even baking. Try that with a fryer. It’s even available at Walmart.
Regardless of the vessel used, the oil temperature within the container is critical. If it’s too low the food will be disgustingly greasy! The only way to tell if the oil is ready for frying is to measure it and that means getting a thermometer. Spend the money and get a digital candy probe thermometer. While a glass one is cheaper, I went through three of them before I gave up. They break sitting in drawers, shelves, when washed and especially when dropped.
Typically the oil should be at 375 degrees or so to begin frying. And since the food being fried is below 375, the oil temperature will drop when the food is added. Typically that means all the food can’t be added at once and hence multiple batches will be required in order to fry it all. The oil should stay above 300 for a good frying session – yes leave the thermometer in during cooking so you can see what’s going on. After removing a batch to drain, let the oil recover to 375 before adding the next batch.
That “fry-a-batch-and-recover” technique works with pan and deep fried foods. I’ve used it on chicken, sea food, vegetable and yes frozen french fries and onion rings. Which reminds me – get a splatter screen if you want to keep clean up to a minimum.
