Frying things in our apartment came to a screeching halt after the fire of summer 2012. But in the spirit of the Super Bowl I decided to lift the ban on frying and make fried chicken.
Nothing is better than eating messy chicken with a beer (or in our case wine) and watching the big game. We also got to make Ashley’s BBQ sauce and it went amazingly with this chicken. I was thinking of ways to re-invent my old fried chicken recipe and I tried out a common trick and used salteen crackers for the breading. When I say this was the best fried chicken I made, it’s an understatement. Not only did this chicken look great, but it tasted amazing!
Crunchy Fried Chicken
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 60 minutes
- Yield: 4-6
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Frying
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Units
- 6-Chicken Drumsticks
- 4 tbsp. of flour
- 20 saltine crackers
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups of vegetable oil ( or enough to fill your skillet half-way)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
BBQ Sauce
- 1/4 cup – Apple Cider Vinegar (I like the taste of apple cider but any vinegar will do)
- 1/2 cup – Water
- 2 Tablespoons – Brown Sugar (you can use white if that’s all you have)
- 1 Tablespoon – Ground Mustard
- 1 teaspoon – Onion Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon – Black Pepper
- 1 thick slice – Lemon (you can substitute lemon juice, add about 1 Tablespoon)
- 4 Tablespoons – Butter
- 1/2 cup – Ketchup
- 2 Tablespoons – Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- One of the tricks to making your fried chicken it to make sure the all excess water is removed.
- To help dry the chicken, place it on a plate lined with paper towel and another paper towel on top.
- In a cast iron skillet, heat oil on stove on medium high heat until 275 degrees.
- While oil is warming, crush the crackers in a bowl and mix in flour, salt, pepper, and paprika.
- In a separate bowl, beat 2 eggs.
- Dip the chicken into the egg and then roll evenly into cracker mixture.
- Place 3 pieces of chicken into the pan and cook for 10 minutes on one side.
- Flip the chicken over and cook 10 minutes on the other side. Cook the chicken throughly, making sure it reaches 165 degrees on the inside.
- If your chicken needs longer to cook just make sure to turn the drum sticks often, about every 2-3 minutes.
- After chicken is cooked, place on a paper towel-lined plate to absorb excess oil and enjoy.
BBQ Sauce
- Combine the vinegar, water, sugar, mustard, onion powder, pepper, lemon, and butter in a pot.
- Simmer on low for 20 minutes (which is about the time it takes for the meatballs to cook!) stirring occasionally.
- Add the ketchup and worcestershire sauce and stir to combine.
- Bring to a boil.
- Remove from heat.
- Enjoy hot or cold!
- Makes a little less than 2 cups of sauce.
