Buttermilk Fried Chicken

Not all recipes are created equal. This buttermilk fried chicken recipe is the result of boredom and curiosity that ended in one of the best recipes that the chef ever discovered. What would happen if you fried the chicken, slow cooked it until the chicken was fall off the bone tender, and then roasted the chicken to make the skin extra crispy again?
Start off by separating all of the drums from the thighs, you can buy them this way but it is cheaper to butcher the chicken yourself.
Coat each piece of chicken in buttermilk and then place the chicken into a container that can hold all of the chicken pieces. Cover the chicken with buttermilk. Adding some hot sauce into the buttermilk is a great way to make the chicken spicier if that’s what you prefer.
Refrigerate the chicken overnight allowing the buttermilk to brine the chicken. This step is crucial if you decide to use breasts as well, dark meat doesn’t dry out much but breast meat is notorious for being dry.
The next day, add flour, salt, black pepper, cayenne, smoked paprika, mustard powder, garlic powder, onion powder, and fennel seed to a mixing bowl. Mix these ingredients well.
Coat each piece of chicken with flour. Try to keep one hand wet and one hand dry to keep your flour from clumping too much, although those clumps end up being crispy bits so maybe don’t be too careful to avoid clumping.
In a sauce pot, add peanut oil until the pot is halfway filled. This is a safety precaution since oil that overflows can start kitchen fires. Heat the oil to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Carefully drop each piece of chicken into the hot oil and deep fry until each piece is golden brown on all sides. It helps to fry it in batches to give each piece room to fry on all sides.
If you want to skip out on the slow cooked and roasting part of this recipe you can be done with your chicken now just make sure that each piece temps at 165 degrees Fahrenheit in the thickest parts. If they aren’t then you need to deep fry them longer or throw them into the oven until they reach that internal temperature. Raw chicken is not something to mess with, be sure of your temps.
For those of us ready to go on the rest of the adventure, heat your oven to 350 degrees. The steps going forward are not meant for chicken breasts, so if you decided to use those then set those aside while the dark meat continues on.
Place your chicken into a roasting pan and cover tightly with foil. Cook the chicken for an hour and a half or until the chicken is fall off the bone tender.
Remove the chicken from the oven and raise the oven temperature to 450 degrees.
Place each piece of chicken onto a baking pan and roast for 15 minutes or until the skin is very crispy again.
Before serving lightly season with a bit of coarse salt and let rest for at least ten minutes.
Unnecessary to do all of this for fried chicken? Maybe.
Unnecessary not to do all of this for fried chicken? Definitely.