Fried Chicken

Every once in a while both my husband and I get a hankering for fried chicken. What’s not to like? It’s crispy & delicious. Plus if you fix it yourself, you can also make cream gravy to smother mashed potatoes or biscuits with. I’ve tried various ways of preparing the fried chicken: just a simple flour coating; soaking in buttermilk; dredging in flour, then an egg wash dip, followed by another coating of flour; frying immediately after dredging; & even letting the coating “set” for a few minutes… Each method produced decent, tasty chicken.

Not long ago my local PBS station started showing Cook’s Country, another cooking program from the producers of America’s Test Kitchen. I happened to catch an episode devoted to fried chicken. I watched, hoping to pick up some helpful tips. The technique used was pretty close to what I was already doing but with a few tweaks.

A Soapbox Rant: I really have a problem with the present obsession with either salting or brining meat. I get tired of almost every pork or poultry recipe in almost every cooking magazine or cooking show starting with salting/brining as first step. And always accompanied by some sort of phraseology implying that the only way to ensure juicy, tender meat is to salt or brine it. The producers of Cook’s Country and Cook’s Illustrated magazines and the America’s Test Kitchen TV show are in that camp. So, of course, their fried chicken recipe begins with a buttermilk/salt brine. Naturally, I stuck with my tried and true plain buttermilk soak.

However, the recipe also included an interesting twist. The recipe testers discovered that the addition of a dribble of buttermilk mixed with the flour produced a crispy coating with delicious crunchy bits. I gave the technique a try and was quite pleased with the results. Since then, I’ve made the fried chicken two additional times, using various bone-in cuts. The recipe produces a really crispy and crunchy fried chicken. And juicy too! Even without brining in a salt solution. (By the way, the real key to tender, juicy meat is to not overcook it. Pretty simple! A good instant and probe thermometer are valuable tools.)

Here’s the Cook’s Country recipe and my notes:

Extra-Crunchy Fried Chicken
6/2004

Making fried chicken at home can be a messy, time-consuming affair. And rarely is the crust as crunchy as that of fast-food fried chicken. We wanted to make juicy, rich tasting fried chicken at home without the big mess and with a crust as crunchy as KFC. Here’s what we discovered:

Test Kitchen Discoveries

• Brine the chicken in heavily salted buttermilk to keep it moist and make it well seasoned. In this case, buttermilk replaces the water for a richer flavor. An hour’s soak seasons the meat to the bone. (I usually soak chicken pieces in buttermilk for at least two hours and often overnight.)
• After trying everything from Melba toast to pancake batter for the crunchy coating, we found a completely unexpected method works best. Combine flour with a little baking powder, and then add buttermilk to make a thick slurry, which clings tightly to the meat.
• Fry the chicken with the lid on the pot for half the cooking time to contain the spatter-prone oil, and to keep the oil hot. As an added bonus, the lid appears to make the meat moister. (I’ve always done this.)
• Shortening provides the cleanest flavor and least-greasy chicken; peanut oil’s a close second. (I prefer oil, usually grapeseed or a light olive oil.)

Keeping the oil at the correct temperature is essential to producing crunchy fried chicken that is neither too brown nor too greasy. Use a candy/deep-fry thermometer to check the temperature of the oil before you add the chicken. (I just drop a crumb from the flour coating into the oil. When it starts bubbling in the hot oil, I know the temperature is OK.) If you cannot find a chicken that weighs 3 1/2 pounds or less, or if you don't have a pan that is 11 inches in diameter, you will have to fry the chicken in two batches. Follow the recipe, frying the chicken four pieces at a time and keeping the first batch warm in a 200-degree oven while the second batch is cooking. If you want to produce a slightly healthier version of this recipe, you can remove the skin from the chicken before soaking it in the buttermilk. The chicken will be slightly less crunchy.

2 cups buttermilk plus 6 additional tablespoons (I use Knudsen brand, a very low sodium product)
2 tablespoons table salt (I omitted all this salt)
1 whole chicken, about 3 1/2 pounds, cut into 8 pieces (I usually fry bone-in thighs, sometimes bone-in breasts, & sometimes boneless, skinless breasts)
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder (I used Hain Featherweight, a sodium free product)
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme (I used about 1 tsp.)
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
(I also added 1 tsp. Tony Chachere’s Salt Free Seasoning)
4 - 5 cups vegetable shortening or peanut oil (I used only about ¼ - ⅓ inch of oil)

1. Whisk together 2 cups buttermilk and salt in large bowl until salt is dissolved. Add chicken pieces to bowl and stir to coat; cover bowl with plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour. Don't let chicken soak much longer or it will become too salty. (I used enough buttermilk to completely cover the chicken pieces and seasoned it with a dash of Tabasco. I let the chicken soak for at least two hours.)

2. Whisk flour, baking powder, thyme, pepper, and garlic powder together in large bowl. Add remaining 6 tablespoons buttermilk (I used a little less, closer to 3-4 tablespoons); with your fingers rub flour and buttermilk together until buttermilk is evenly incorporated into flour and mixture resembles coarse wet sand.

3. Working in batches of two, drop chicken pieces into flour mixture and turn to thoroughly coat, gently pressing flour mixture onto chicken. Shake excess flour from each piece of chicken and transfer to wire rack set over rimmed baking sheet.

4. Heat oil (it should measure 3/4 inch deep) in large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven with 11-inch diameter over medium-high heat until it reaches 375 degrees. [I used a 12 inch frying pan and poured in only about ¼ - ⅓ inch of oil. I did not use a thermometer.] Place chicken pieces, skin-side down, in oil, cover, and fry until deep golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove lid after 4 minutes and lift chicken pieces to check for even browning; rearrange if some pieces are browning faster than others. (At this point, oil should be about 300 degrees. Adjust burner, if necessary, to regulate temperature of oil.) Turn chicken pieces over and continue to fry, uncovered, until chicken pieces are deep golden brown on second side, 6 to 8 minutes longer. (At this point, to keep chicken from browning too quickly, adjust burner to maintain oil temperature of about 315 degrees.) Using tongs, transfer chicken to plate lined with paper towels; let stand for 5 minutes to drain. Serve.

A Fabulous Creamy Salad Dressing

I've always enjoyed The Old Spaghetti Factory's Creamy Pesto Salad Dressing. A few weeks ago I met a friend there for lunch and requested the creamy pesto dressing for my side salad. That lead me to look online for a copycat recipe. I found the same clone recipe all over the place including at CD Kitchen. I decided to try it. However I made some changes. I cut the quantities of oil and mayonnaise -- the oil to lessen calories and the mayo to lessen calories & salt content. I also cut the amount of dried basil because there was less dressing base that needed flavoring. Here's the clone:

The Old Spaghetti Factory Creamy Pesto Dressing

Ingredients:

3/4 cup oil (I used only 1/4 cup)
1 cup mayonnaise (I used only 1/2 cup)
3/4 cup buttermilk (I used Knudsen brand* -- really low sodium [130 mg./cup])
2 tablespoons grated Romano cheese
2 tablespoons crushed dried basil (I used 1 tbsp. dried and 2 Dorot cubes)
1/2 teaspoon salt (I omitted completely)
1 clove garlic, minced
Hot pepper sauce

Directions:

Whisk together oil and mayonnaise. Add buttermilk, cheese, basil, salt, garlic and hot pepper sauce to taste. Mix thoroughly. Cover and let flavors meld overnight in refrigerator.

*If you live in the eastern, southeastern and midwestern United States, Knudsen is known by the Breakstone's name.

I originally made the dressing just for me because I thought my husband might not like the predominant basil flavor. I was wrong! He tasted it and wanted some on his salad too. He doesn't care much for vinaigrette dressings. The sour vinegar taste just doesn't appeal to him. I was quite happy to find a creamy concoction that was tasty, low salt, and not brimming with calories. The only drawback was that the water in the buttermilk separated, and because I used less mayo, it was thin. It needed work.

In the meantime, I remembered a discussion on the Recipe Exchange forum about copycat recipes. One of the posters suggested trying to find a particular copycat recipe cookbook at the local library. So I picked up Todd Wilbur's Even More Top Secret Recipes from my county library. It was fun checking out the many recipes. In fact, it even had a clone for the chili sauce used at Original Tommy's. That's my uncle's hamburger restaurant chain in Los Angeles.

Two copycat recipes caught my eye -- The Carl's Jr. Bacon Swiss Crispy Chicken Sandwich
and the Ranch Crispy Chicken Sandwich. The thing that intrigued me was Todd's use of unflavored gelatin in the sandwich spread. I figured it thickened and stabilized the ranch dressing used in both sandwiches. I wondered if it would work for the creamy pesto salad dressing clone.

I've been experimenting for some time now with various salad dressing thickeners in an attempt to cut calories without sacrificing texture. Several months ago I wrote about my attempts with Sure-Jell. It's a good thickener, but it's got citric acid in it. So it makes things extra sour. That's OK for some uses, like vinaigrette salad dressings, as long as you remember to cut the vinegar quantity some. I also experimented with xanthan gum and guar gum, both available at most health food stores and widely used in gluten-free baking. The gums worked fine as thickeners, but, all by themselves, they had kind of "off" flavors. So I continued looking. I even sent away to King Arthur Flour for some ClearJel. It also worked fine, and it had no discernible flavor.

When I read about the gelatin, I knew I had to give it a try. So I made up another batch of the creamy pesto dressing. This time I changed the recipe even more to lower calories and salt content. The gelatin worked out perfectly. It thickened the dressing and kept it from separating. It did not have a gummy texture, and there was no unusual flavor. Plus unflavored gelatin is readily available at all grocery stores. The next day, I was afraid I had made basil flavored jello, but all it took was a quick whisk and the dressing was ready to go. The best thing about this experiment is that now I have a really great low calorie and low salt creamy dressing base. I can change out the basil for any number of herbs and flavorings. Creamy Italian, Creamy Peppercorn, Blue Cheese, Ranch...

Here's what I ended up with:

1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream (If you don't have sour cream available, use mayo)
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. dried basil
2 cubes Dorot frozen chopped basil
2 tbsp. finely grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. unflavored gelatin
1-2 tbsp. hot water

Whisk together all ingredients except gelatin and water. In a small bowl, combine hot tap water and gelatin. Microwave in five second increments, stirring frequently, until gelatin is completely dissolved. Whisk gelatin mixture into dressing. Refrigerate for at least two hours before serving. Whisk before serving.

Soy Sauce Studies

Soy sauce is a great flavoring agent. It’s perfect, of course, for Asian inspired dishes. But it’s also great in beef dishes. Before CHF (congestive heart failure) affected my cooking approach, I always added a tablespoon or so of soy sauce to beef stew, pot roast, Swedish style meatballs, even super simple hamburger gravy. The addition of a bit of soy sauce boosted the “beefiness” of those and other dishes. It’s the umami , a basic flavor profile that is common to savory products such as meat, cheese, and mushrooms.

What’s the problem with using soy sauce? It’s as salty as all get out! Even the so-called low sodium versions are pretty high in sodium content. When it comes to “heart healthy” recipes and products, soy sauce is ever present. It’s understandable because it does add so much flavor. It makes a terrific marinade for all kinds of super lean cuts of meat. You can make tasty stir-fries with just a smidgen of meat and an overload of good-for-you veggies. But… Just because a dish is low in fat, doesn’t mean it’s necessarily “heart healthy.” Anyone suffering from hypertension, CHF, and other heart-related problems knows that controlling sodium intake is important too.

A quick look at the soy sauce options readily available at most grocery stores are pretty discouraging. Kikkoman regular soy sauce has 920 mg. of sodium for just one tablespoon. Its lite or reduced sodium version has 575 mg. per tablespoon. Better but definitely not great. San-J Tamari has similar numbers: the regular is 960 mg. for one tablespoon while the reduced sodium version has 700 mg. per tablespoon.

Are there any decent alternatives out there? Well, one possibility is making your own low sodium soy sauce substitute. Dick Logue of Low Sodium Cooking has come up with a tasty substitute. I’ve made it a couple of times and adjusted some of the ingredients to fit my tastes, mainly lessening the vinegar & molasses quantities. The biggest difficulty I had was that the recipe made about 2 cups of substitute and I simply could not use it up quickly enough. So, even though it was refrigerated, it eventually developed a bit of mold. Commercially bottled soy sauce has a much longer shelf life; it can truly last indefinitely.

I’ve read posts on so many forums touting the low sodium content of Bragg’s Liquid Aminos and its use as a soy sauce alternative. Bragg’s products are readily available in the natural foods sections of most grocery stores and at most health food stores. The problem is that most of the people hyping the low sodium properties of Bragg’s haven’t done the math correctly. The Bragg’s current website notes that ½ teaspoon is considered one serving, and that ½ teaspoon contains 160 mg. sodium. It takes six of those ½ teaspoons to equal one tablespoon, the standard serving size for soy sauce. 6 x 160 mg. = 960 mg. per tablespoon of Bragg’s. I don’t see how that can be considered a truly low salt alternative unless it is so heavily concentrated that you need only use a couple of teaspoons. If you’re curious about Bragg’s, the website has a free sample offer. You might consider sending for the samples and making your own judgment.

Another possibility is Chinese Black Vinegar. I’ve read on a couple of forums that some people think it’s a good substitute for soy sauce. I’ve used it before, and it does add a nice flavor component to Asian style dishes. The biggest problem with black vinegar is availability. You either have to shop at an Asian grocery store or order it online.

The idea of shopping at an Asian market, if you've got one nearby, is a good one. That way you could spend hours searching the aisles and checking labels. You might discover some hitherto unknown brands of soy sauce, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, fish sauce, etc. with very low sodium contents. It could be a lot of fun.

All is not lost, however. Years ago I discovered World Harbors Angostura Lite Soy Sauce. It had 390 mg. of sodium per tablespoon. Compared to the 575 mg. of lower sodium Kikkoman, it was a great improvement. My local grocer, Raley’s, carried it along with Angostura Teriyaki and Worcestershire Sauces. Unfortunately, by the time my husband was diagnosed with CHF, the grocery store had discontinued the lite soy sauce. Happily, I re-discovered it when I started searching online for low sodium products. Healthy Heart Market carries it.

Recently I ordered a couple of bottles of House of Tsang Lower Sodium Soy Sauce from SaltWatcher. This soy sauce has 300 mg. sodium per tablespoon, a slight improvement over the Angostura brand. I haven’t used it yet, but I’m sure it will taste fine. I have confidence in House of Tsang products since I already have & use their Mongolian Fire Oil. At the same time, I also ordered a couple of bottles of Seal Sama Less Sodium Teriyaki Sauce from SaltWatcher. It has only 160 mg. sodium per tablespoon. I’ve used it a couple of times now and really like it. The flavor is good and the consistency is thick, so it makes a good glaze.

I also just noticed that Heart Wise Foods sells a super low sodium soy sauce, Chinatown brand. It has only 145 mg. per tablespoon. Now that’s super low! I’m going to order some and give it a taste test. Heart Wise also carries a low sodium teriyaki sauce that I’d like to try. It’s Sable & Rosenfeld - Tipsy Teriyaki - Gourmet Sauce with only 135 mg. sodium for two tablespoons.

If you’re interested in creating low sodium Asian style dishes & stir fries, you’ll need some other flavoring ingredients in addition to just soy sauce. Toasted sesame oil is a must. A drizzle on top of finished dishes or in marinades adds a wonderful toasted, nutty flavor. Most grocery stores carry at least one brand in the ethnic foods aisle. Another must-have is unseasoned rice wine vinegar. Combined with other flavoring agents, it adds extra sparkle. Hot chili oil and/or red pepper flakes are also necessary. Just the slightest sprinkle enlivens bland dishes. Of course, if you like hot foods, add more.

Ginger & garlic are other requirements. Both flavors are necessary for Asian style dishes. And it doesn’t matter how you get that flavor. You can find powdered ginger or garlic powder everywhere. Most grocery stores carry jarred crushed ginger and jarred crushed garlic in their produce section. Usually the bottled garlic & ginger are prepared without salt. Many stores now carry the Christopher Ranch whole peeled garlic cloves in the refrigerated section of their produce department. And some stores carry Gourmet Garden fresh herb pastes in handy tubes. These are usually found in the refrigerated section of the produce department. Watch out, though. Be sure to read the labels. Although the product is super convenient, the chili & garlic pastes are relatively high in sodium. However, the ginger and cilantro/coriander pastes are pretty good. And, in order to create a consistency useful for squeezing out of a tube, fillers have been added so the herbal flavor may not be as strong as desired. Of course, there’s always fresh ginger & fresh heads of garlic.

Cilantro is another flavoring agent that works well in Asian style dishes. A generous sprinkling of the freshly chopped herb really boosts taste. Although fresh cilantro is best used as a finishing garnish, I have also thrown a couple of tablespoons of my own homemade frozen chopped cilantro into marinades & stir fries. Not as good as fresh, but better than no cilantro at all.

Another handy ingredient is Chinese Five Spice Powder This spice blend most commonly combines the sweet tones of star anise, fennel seeds, cloves, ginger, and cinnamon with the bite of Szechwan pepper and sometimes white pepper. The sweet and pungent flavor goes well with meats and stir fries. Be forewarned, though. A little goes a long way. So you’re better off using just a ⅛ teaspoon to start with until you’re sure you like the flavor. It's also available in the ethnic foods section of most grocery stores.

The bottom Line: If you make your own lower sodium soy sauce substitute, then “the sky’s the limit.” You don’t have to worry about soy sauce quantities at all. Just be sure to watch out for other Asian ingredients that are high in sodium. Things like Hoisin sauce, Oyster sauce, Thai fish sauce, garlic/chili paste, etc.

If you'd prefer using a commercially prepared lower sodium soy sauce, look for Asian inspired recipes that do not call for more than ¼ cup of soy sauce. Instead of the ¼ cup, just use 2 tablespoons of low sodium soy sauce.

And, of course, please realize that lower sodium soy sauces or soy sauce substitutes will NOT taste as good as the higher quality, authentic Chinese or Japanese sauces. But they will taste pretty good and they will definitely be lower in sodium.

Here’s a basic stir fry sauce & marinade recipe. Obviously, you can change the quantities to please your palate:

Basic Stir Fry Sauce/Marinade

1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp. minced garlic (or more)
1 tbsp. minced ginger
¼ cup low sodium chicken broth
2 tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp. brown sugar
⅛ tsp. hot chili oil (or more)
¼ tsp. white pepper
2 tsp. unseasoned rice vinegar
2 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 1 tbsp. water
⅛ tsp. 5 spice powder (optional)
Chopped fresh cilantro (garnish)

For Pour-On Sauce: Heat the sesame oil in a small saucepan. Add the ginger and garlic and stir-fry 15-30 seconds over medium heat to bring out the flavor. Add the chicken broth, soy sauce, brown sugar, chili oil, white pepper, and vinegar (Add 5 spice powder, if using). Bring just to a boil, stirring. Dissolve the cornstarch in the water and whisk into the sauce. Heat until sauce thickens and reaches a full boil. Simmer for 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and set aside.

For Marinade: Combine all the ingredients and mix until well blended. Add ½ pound thinly sliced raw chicken, pork, or turkey (cut while slightly frozen to easily obtain thin slices). Let meat marinate for at least 30 minutes, up to two hours. (Sometimes I add the marinade to ½ ground beef, turkey or chicken instead of sliced meat.) Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in sauté pan or wok, add meat and stir fry until cooked through.

If you add thinly sliced vegetables such as onions, carrots, celery, cabbage, etc. to the cooked marinated meat and add left-over cooked rice, you end up with a delicious one pot meal.