Yes, that’s right, another recipe from Grandma! She’s a little less secretive about her blend of herbs and spices but to be fair it’s probably not that dissimilar to a lot of fried chicken recipes but it is delicious.
This recipe makes enough to coat about 4 (skin-on) thighs and two drumsticks or alternatively about 3-4 breasts sliced into strips.
For the coating you will need:
125g self raising flour
Then all the following are teaspoons;
2 x celery salt
1 x sea salt
2 x black pepper
2 x paprika
1 x cayenne pepper
2 x dried oregano
2 x dried thyme
2 x ground cumin
1 x ground coriander
2 x garlic powder
Mix all the ingredients together. For coating the chicken you want a larger surface area, so if you’ve mixed everything in a bowl it’s best to spread some out on a plate or shallow dish.
Beat an egg into a bowl (you may need more than one for this amount of chicken) and you’re all set up to begin your production line.
Fill a shallow frying pan with vegetable oil to about two inches deep and heat it slowly to a moderately high temperature - test with a small piece of chicken, it should sizzle instantly but no uncontrollably!
If you’re using chicken breast chop them into thin strips, not too thin, think chicken tenders not spaghetti. If you’re using whole chicken pieces pat the skin dry lightly with some kitchen paper.
Dip your chicken in the beaten egg and cover fully, then toss it gently in the flour mix. Make sure the chicken is coated well, you can double dip if you like, then carefully place the coated chicken in the hot oil.
Get a few pieces in the oil but don’t overcrowd the pan, you want to be able to manage everything in their with ease and without hurting yourself!
Turn the pieces of chicken regularly until the skin is crisp and a deep golden colour. Remove and drain on a few pieces of kitchen paper. If you have more chicken to coat and fry pop your already cooked chicken into the oven on a low heat, this will help keep it warm and ensure it’s cooked through.
Once all your chicken is done tuck in! It’s great while it’s warm and juicy but if you’ve made chicken strips it’s also great to let it cool and slice it up for sandwiches!
Serve with corn on the cob, coleslaw and sweet potato fries.
You could also make this meat free by coating tofu instead of chicken.