Mel’s Fried Chicken Tenders
If fried chicken is your love language, honey, pull up a chair — this fried chicken is extra crunchy, perfectly seasoned, and downright delicious, just like Sunday supper at mamaw’s.
Marinade:
2-3 cups of buttermilk, enough to cover the chicken
2 TBSP dill pickle juice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
A few dashes of hot sauce, if you’re feeling spicy
1-2 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into tenders
Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a large bowl. Add the chicken and stir to coat all the chicken. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, but I usually let it chill about 4-5 hours.
Dredge:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
Mix all the dredge ingredients together in a large bowl. Then add in 2-3 TBSP of the marinade and mix that around to make little clumps of flour. This magic trick will give you those crispy bits all over your chicken.
Before you start dredging your chicken, heat up some vegetable oil in a heavy bottomed pot. You want 3-4 inches of oil here, so the chicken has room to move around as it fries. While the oil heats up, lets get that chicken ready, so remove it from the fridge. Now one piece at a time, remove the chicken from the buttermilk, and place in the flour mixture, making sure to really press that flour onto both sides. Place the chicken on a wire rack set over a baking sheet to rest. Repeat with all the remaining chicken pieces. Once all the chicken is dredged in the flour and the oil is up to 340-350 degrees, it’s time to fry!! Carefully place one piece of chicken at a time into the hot oil. I usually fry 3-4 pieces at a time, you don’t want to overcrowd the pot. Fry each batch about 6-8 minutes, flipping halfway through, or until it reaches an internal temp of 165, and is beautifully golden brown. Remove the chicken form the oil and place on a clean wire rack set over a baking sheet to drain. This step helps keep your chicken nice and crispy as it cools. Now repeat with all the remaining chicken. Once all your chicken is cooked to perfection, serve it up with your favorite dipping sauce and enjoy the crispiest chicken you’ve ever made!!