Here’s a classic, crispy fried chicken recipe 🍗✨—juicy on the inside, crunchy on the outside.
Classic Fried Chicken
Ingredients
- 6–8 pieces chicken (drumsticks, thighs, or breasts)
- 2 cups buttermilk (or milk + 1 tbsp vinegar)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- Oil for frying (vegetable or canola)
Instructions
- Marinate chicken:
- Place chicken in a bowl and cover with buttermilk.
- Refrigerate at least 1 hour (overnight is even better).
- Prepare coating:
- In a bowl, mix flour, salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder.
- Coat chicken:
- Remove chicken from buttermilk, letting excess drip off.
- Dredge thoroughly in seasoned flour.
- Heat oil:
- Heat about 1½–2 inches of oil in a deep pan to 350°F (175°C).
- Fry:
- Fry chicken in batches 12–15 minutes, turning occasionally, until golden and cooked through.
- (Internal temp should reach 165°F / 74°C.)
- Drain & rest:
- Place chicken on paper towels or a rack.
- Let rest 5 minutes before serving.
Tips & Variations
- Extra crispy: Double-dip—back into buttermilk, then flour again.
- Oven-finish: If browns too fast, finish in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes.
- Spicy: Add cayenne or hot sauce to the buttermilk.
- No deep frying: Shallow fry, turning more often.
Want a crispy oven-baked, air fryer, or extra-spicy version?
