"Fried" Chicken Rules at the 4th Annual Wine and Food Festival in NYC

 

Elizabeth Karmel, Art Smith, John Currence, Floyd Cardoz and some of my other favorites cooked their own take on fried chicken. Eddie Huang was one of the fans of my "Masala Fried Chicken". Art's fried chicken was delicious, but the pickles were where the magic was. John was worried his crust was limp - but so were the crusts on all the others. That is what happens with cold-fried chicken! Floyd made his with chickpea flour and spices. Ours was served with an avocado and peanut slaw. We could not have had enough no matter how much we brought with us. Magic was in the air.

Fried Chicken Masala (from American Masala - Suvir Saran with Raquel Pelzel)

Serves 4

My friends Renée and Carl Behnke are consummate hosts and gourmands and Fried Chicken is one of her favorite dishes to offer a hungry crowd. Her secret for an amazingly crispy and crunchy crust, which is now mine (and yours) too, is to let the chicken rest in flour as the oil heats. I have adapted her recipe and have given it an Indian twist. Indians (like many southerners) love buttermilk, so it’s a natural to use as a liquid spiked with Indian aromatics for the brine. I add even more spices to the flour coating to give the chicken an extra hit of flavor.

 

For the buttermilk brine

3 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup kosher salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon cracked peppercorns

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

3 1/2 to 4-pound chicken cut into 8 parts

 

Canola oil

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons ground coriander

2 teaspoons garam masala

2 teaspoons cracked pepper

1 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

 

Mix the buttermilk with all of the spices for the brine in a large bowl. Transfer to a resealable gallon-sized plastic bag. Add the chicken, turn to coat and refrigerate overnight.

 

Heat 1 inch of canola oil in a large heavy-bottomed high-sided skillet over medium-high heat until it reaches 375°F. Whisk the flour with the spices and add the chicken pieces to it. Turn to coat in flour and let the chicken rest in the flour until the oil gets hot. Tap off the excess flour and add as many pieces of chicken to the skillet as you can. Fry until browned, about 4 to 6 minutes. Turn the chicken over and fry until the chicken is deeply browned on the other side, about another 4 to 6 minutes. Using tongs, transfer the chicken pieces to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Serve while warm or at room temperature.

Recipe from American Masala: 125 New Classics From My Home Kitchen by Suvir Saran and Raquel Pelzel

Comments

[skills0]

This sounds fantastic. Fried chicken is great anyway, add some Indian spices and should be amazing.

[Jeff]

I introduced a friend to your chicken recipe - the one we made at Epcot the year I met you during the Food & Wine Festival - and it was the first time she had ever been successful making fried chicken!

Thanks, Suvir!

[kankana]

I seriously need to make this sometime soon. Amazing flavor combination you used :) and the color it gave is such crispy golden

[Jhon at WheyProteinLabs.com]

avocado and peanut slaw. We could not have had enough no matter how much we brought with us. Magic was in the air.