This chicken start to finish can take up to two days to prepare however the actual work to make it isn’t hard. This will also be some of the best fried chicken of your life so needless to say its worth the planning that goes into it!
This recipe is for 1 whole chicken, about 4 lbs cut into pieces of legs, wings, thighs and breast. Alternatively, you can purchase the chicken butchered the way you like it.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup salt
- ½ cup sugar
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
- 1 tablespoon coriander seed
- 2 star anise pods
- 4 cups buttermilk
- 5 tablespoons Wah Gwan®
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- Scotch bonnet powder to taste for added heat optional
Instructions
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Make a Brine: Boil a kettle or pot of roughly 4 cups of water. Once boiled, pour into a bowl and add: 1 cup of salt, ½ cup sugar, 3 bay leaves, 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns, 1 tablespoon coriander seed, 2 Star anise pods. Whisk together and taste, it should be overly flavorful, this is your concentrate.
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Cool and mix with ½ gallon or so of water or enough to fully cover the chicken. It should still be full of flavor, if not, dilute more sugar and salt and add. You can expedite the cooling process here by adding ice.
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Place your chicken in a pot that has a fitted lid. Pour your brine over the chicken, cover and place in the fridge for 24 hours.
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Make your Buttermilk Soak: 4 cups buttermilk, 2 tablespoons salt, 4 tablespoons Wah Gwan® seasoning , scotch bonnet powder to taste for added heat (optional). Whisk buttermilk, Wah Gwan® seasoning and a tablespoon of salt in a medium mixing bowl.
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Drain the brined chicken and leave the chicken in the pot. Pour the buttermilk mixture over the chicken and mix to coat making sure all the chicken is covered.
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Cover with the lid and place in the fridge overnight or 4 hours minimum.
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Pull your chicken out of the fridge and let it sit on your countertop for an hour or so to allow the chicken to come to room temperature. The idea is to not put cold chicken in really hot oil.
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Make your flower dredge: 4 cups of all purpose flour, 1 tablespoon of Wah Gwan®, Pinch of salt, mix together in a bowl.
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Spread the flower dredge on a plate, ideally with a slight lip on the edge to keep from spilling out.
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Pour vegetable oil in a large pot deep enough for frying and fill to where the oil will completely cover the chicken in one layer. Using an instant read thermometer, bring the oil to 350 degrees.
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Dredge each piece of chicken and drop in the oil, fry until Golden Brown or until internal temperature reads 165 degrees with your instant read thermometer. Try to maintain the oil at 350 degrees as you go.
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Remove with a slotted spoon and let sit on a paper towel or brown paper for just a moment to drain excess oil.
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Serve with your favorite sauce or honey and enjoy!
