Today, I want to tell you about Fried Chicken!
Fried Chicken has got to be one of the most best meals ever. We dont have it much, because Daddy says it's too messy, and it takes too long.
Mommy brought home a whole fryer from the grocery store on Friday, so Daddy said we could have Fried Chicken on Saturday night!
This is the best ever, but you have to set aside your coronary aversion to animal fats. It's okay...It's not like we cook like this for every meal.
This recipe comes from one of Daddy's favourite cookbooks, and he has plenty of them! Grand-Mommy gave him this book. It's the Rumford Complete Cookbook, from the Rumford Chemical Works in Providence, Rhode Island, 1908.
Now take a deep breath, because this next part will sound really alien to our ever so fat averse ears, but if you can make it past this, you are well on your way to fried chicken bliss.
Quothe the chicken, "Fry some more."
The recipe says to take a couple of pounds of bacon and render the fat. It doesn't say what to do with the bacon, probably because they figure you will know what to do with the bacon. What you want is the bacon fat. That's right, the fat. Why? Because "pork fat rules, baby" as Emeril would say. You should end up with about two to three cups. This is what we're going to use to fry the chicken!
If you're still with me to this point, good, but you may be thinking that it's an awful lot of bacon, and that just doesn't fit our diet. Ours either. As a matter of fact, we rarely have bacon, however, when we do, Daddy saves the fat. After a considerable time, he will have collected enough to fry a chicken. As providence would have it, we just happen to be at that point.
Bacon Fat. That's where it's at!
Now take your chicken...
and cut it up.
Then get a big bowl and put 1 cup of big salt and one cup of sugar in it.
Add just enough cold water to dissolve the salt and sugar. SUGAR? Yes! Remember sugar is hygroscopic, which means it will grab and hold onto moisture from where ever it can.
This is a good thing when you're cooking a lean protein such as chicken or pork or shrimp, etc...
I cant think of brining any red meats such as beef except for corned beef. Put the chicken in the brine and add enough ice cold water to cover it completely and put it in the refrigerator for a few hours, or about an hour per pound.
A little science: Brining works by utilising two principles known as diffusion and osmosis.
The idea is sort of like Ying and Yang in that everything seeks a balance, equilibrium, or a unity of opposites, as the Taoist Chinese would say.
When you put the chicken in the brine, there is a greater concentration of salt and sugar outside the chicken (the brine) than there is inside the chicken (the cells).
So, the law of diffusion states that the salt and sugar will naturally flow from the area of greater concentration to the area of lower concentration.
Likewise, there is more water outside than in, so it too will flow from the greater area of concentration to the lower.
Additionally, any flavourful things that are dissolved in the water will be carried into the cells as well!
When water moves in this fashion it is called osmosis.
But that's not all....Inside the cells, the salt and sugar cause the cell proteins to unravel, or denature. As the individual proteins unravel, they are more likely to interact with each other. This creates a sticky matrix that captures and holds moisture. When exposed to heat, the matrix gels and forms a sort of barrier that prevents the water from escaping as the chicken cooks.
So what you get is a more flavourful and juicy chicken!
If you leave the skin on your chicken, brining tends to keep the skin from getting crisp. To adjust for this, allow the skin to air dry in your refrigerator for a few minutes.
Thanks to Julia Collin of America's Test Kitchen for this science lesson!
Let's start cooking!
Heat the bacon fat to about 300 degrees in your big black skillet.
Starting with the legs and thighs, dredge the chicken in seasoned flour and place skin side down in the skillet.
Cook for about five minutes before turning. After turning, reduce the heat and cover.
Continue cooking until the internal temperature is about 180.
Remove the cover, and increase the heat. Turn the chicken once more to crisp up the side that was exposed
during the covered time, and then remove to a dish to drain and cool. Repeat for the other parts.
If Daddy's not looking, you can sneak a bite or two...
So, here is the finished dish!
Watch for forks going for that second piece!
Jaden pronounced it, Hou Mei**!
Dont plan on any leftovers!
**Mandarin -- Delicious!
Caint nobody cook it like...
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