Buttermilk Fried Chicken – Southern, Fried, but Not Southern Fried

Not being from the south, I had no idea that this recipe I've been calling southern fried chicken for a long time, was not really southern fried chicken.

It was southern, and it was fried, but the addition of the buttermilk marinade apparently disqualified it from being a true southern fried chicken recipe.

According to my sources deep within the southern fried chicken subculture, real southern fried chicken consists of chicken parts, dredged in seasoned flour, and fried in hot oil until crisp and cooked.

That's it. If any additional steps or ingredients are added, and you still call it southern fried chicken, someone may drop a, "Well, bless your heart" on you. Sounds nice, right? It's not, ask a southerner.

I'll have to try that pure version one day, but I love the tangy tenderization that the buttermilk and associated bacteria provide, so I don't see any reason to change my approach.

Yes, this is a messy project, but there are perks to having a Dutch oven full of oil around for a few days. You already saw the Paczki we made, and you will see a French fry demo soon, so stay tuned.

I decided to show a couple minutes of me cutting up the whole chicken into the classic eight-piece meal. I did speed it up to make it somewhat bearable, so if you need to, go back and watch it a few times to see the nuances of the dissection. Enjoy!

UPDATE! It seems I wasn't clear in the video regarding the temperature. The oil is 350 degrees F. to start, but when the chicken goes in it will drop to about 300. It should rise back to 305-310 and be held at that until done, about 20 minutes. I've added a notation in the video, so hopefully that will help!

Ingredients:
3 1/2 pound chicken, cut in 8 pieces
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 tsp ground dried herbs (oregano, thyme, rosemary, sage)
2 cups buttermilk

for the seasoned flour:
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder

2 1/2 quarts peanut oil for frying