What Is The Secret To Good Fried Chicken?
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What is the secret to good fried chicken?
Or, You might ask it this way, “What is the secret to making great fried chicken?”
First, let’s start with the basics of what is Southern fried chicken?
Southern fried chicken is a Southern American dish consisting of chicken pieces (often from the chicken breast, thigh, leg, or wing) that are battered, pan-fried, or deep-fried.

What makes fried chicken taste so good?
As the name suggests, traditional Southern fried chicken is made with soul food Southern spices battered in flour and deep fried in oil to yield a crispy, crunchy, and flavorful outside, with tender, juicy meat on the inside!
What’s the secret to good fried chicken?
The secret to good fried chicken is to start right here with a soul food Southern fried chicken recipe!
Soul food Southern fried chicken recipe
Well-seasoned Southern fried chicken is a recipe that Black people created and perfected! An integral part of a soul food menu.
Soul food is a variety of comfort-food cuisine originating from African American culture in the Southern United States.
There’s no denying that chicken with a balance of tender meat on the inside and crispy skin seasoned to perfection on the outside is a recipe for success when making Southern fried chicken.
These are techniques developed by African American cooks. So that’s precisely what you’ll get – the secrets to good fried chicken when you use a soul food Southern fried chicken recipe!

What do you soak chicken in before frying?
The simple answer to that age-old question is to soak the chicken in a buttermilk marinade before frying the chicken.

Why use a buttermilk marinade for chicken?
Buttermilk can tenderize the chicken without it becoming tough and chewy. It’s the secret ingredient to making chicken that’s soft and tender!
What is the best oil for frying chicken?
Peanut oil is preferred for deep-frying because of its relatively high smoke point of about 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
Other oils have higher smoke points but impart a strong flavor to the food. Peanut oil is a mild-flavored oil, so it won’t interfere with the taste of the fried chicken.
Peanut oil has the least amount of saturated fats compared to other cooking oils, making it the best choice for frying chicken.

What’s a good substitute for cornstarch?
Some Southern fried chicken recipes call for cornstarch to bind and thicken the batter for an extra crunch!
But cornstarch is not required. Instead, you can use all-purpose flour or a mix of 50/50 all-purpose flour and cornstarch for your fried chicken batter.
So what else can you use to season the flour?
Cornstarch doesn’t season the flour. It’s simply used for more crunch. You could also add hot sauce to the seasoning for more heat!

How do you make batter for fried chicken?
After seasoning the chicken, soul food Southern fried chicken goes through a 3-step dredging process to batter it.
- First, place the chicken in a Zip-lock bag (or bowl) of seasoned flour and shake or toss to coat the chicken evenly.
- Second, shake off the excess flour and dip the chicken into a prepared buttermilk mixture.
- Third, transfer the chicken to the last bag (or bowl) of flour and shake or toss until it’s very well coated.
- Then place the coated chicken into the pre-heated oil to fry, skin-side down.
3 tips for the best fried chicken at home
So, in conclusion, the secret to good fried chicken lies in the following:
These three components will make perfectly crunchy and flavorful chicken on the outside with juicy, seasoned tender meat inside!
Did you enjoy this how-to post about the secret to good fried chicken?
Have you had Southern fried chicken?
Would you make it?
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Thank you! Buttermilk marinade for the win!