6chicken breasts, bone in, cut in half (optional to remove skin if you prefer no skin)
2Tbspgarlic powder
2Tbspkosher salt
2tspblack pepper
1Tbspsugar
2Tbsppaprika
2Tbspcayenne pepper
2Tbsponion powder
Brine:
1quartbuttermilk
2Tbspvodka
2Tbspyellow mustard
Dredge:
1 ½cupscornstarch
2 ½cupsall purpose flour
1Tbspbaking powder
2Tbspkosher salt
1Tbspblack pepper
1Tbsppaprika
1Tbspcayenne pepper
½Tbspcelery seeds
1Tbspdried thyme
Ingredient:
cooking oil to deep fry
Instructions
Pat chicken dry with paper towel.
Mix rub ingredients together and rub it all over the chicken and place on rack on baking pan.
In a large mixing bowl, mix all brine ingredients together. Add rubbed chicken to the brine along with any remaining rub mix. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
In a large shallow dish, whisk together the dredge mix and set aside.
Prepare a baking pan with a cooling rack to place the dredged chicken on top.
Remove brined chicken from fridge and place on rack on baking pan.
Pull out one chicken piece at a time and let the brine mix fall off the chicken as much as possible. Then dredge the chicken, one at a time. Make sure the chicken is fully coated with the dredge mix and that there is no wet area on the chicken.
Place dredged chicken on pan rack.
Once all chicken pieces are dredged, place them in the fridge for 30 minutes to let it sit and set.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Fill a deep fryer or pot with cooking oil, no more than halfway. Heat oil to 300 degrees and fry chicken for 20 minutes occasionally turning the chicken, until light golden brown. Try not to overcrowd them that way your crispy will be extra crispy. If doing more than one batch, then make sure to bring the oil temperature back to 300 degrees before repeating the process.
Place fried chicken on a baking pan with rack and let it cool for 10 minutes and then refry them but this time you will need to bring the oil temperature to 375 degrees and then fry them for 3 minutes. You can test to make sure the chicken is fully cooked by putting a thermometer into the chicken. If it reaches 165 degrees for chicken breasts, then it’s cooked.