6 Tips on How To Cook Fried Chicken At Home

It may not be our usual fast-food chicken but these tips can help make good fried chicken at home, too.

While we’re all advocates for eating healthy, there are times we just want to eat something guilty. Fried chicken has always been a go-to for many—whether in the form of nuggets or Cordon Bleu. Sometimes, we might find ourselves craving fried chicken but we also get demotivated because of the mess it leaves behind. But here are some tips to keep the mess and oil to a minimum while still getting that lovely crispy fried chicken.

1. Buy chicken in bulk

We usually buy specific parts of a chicken because there are some parts the family doesn’t like or are irritating to clean. Some supermarkets like S&R and brands like Bounty Fresh sell particular chicken parts in bulk—which in the long run is cheaper. Instead of buying a whole chicken, buying the specific parts in bulk will keep cleaning the chicken to a minimum.

2. Double marinade the chicken

There are two kinds of marinade: wet and dry marinade. Wet marinades include sauces like BBQ sauce, oyster sauce, vinegar, lemon juice, and different other liquids. Dry involves dried herbs like garlic powder, freshly ground chili flakes, peppercorns, and more. Adding dried herbs first to the chicken before putting on the batter that has the same herbs can make sure the flavor sinks into the meat.

3. Air Fry or Bake Them

Air fryers and toaster ovens essentially do the same thing—which is cooking with air. Cooking the chicken in a toaster oven or air fryer can still produce the same crispiness with less oil! Essentially, it’s using the chicken fat to fry up the batter and skin to get that crispy texture and flavor. It also prevents the fried chicken from becoming a sad, paper-tasting piece of meat.

4. Mix and match the herbs

It sounds scary to mix and match herbs. But don’t be overwhelmed! Here’s the chance to dissect and find out why our kids love fast-food fried chicken so much. For some, it’s the gravy that makes it good. Others, it’s the spices or marinade. Mix and match some like soaking the chicken in rice wine, rolling the chicken with a parmesan batter, etc. Or, using the leftover juices from the kimchi jar to marinate the chicken for some K-Chicken.

Cooking is like science. It’s fun to experiment and thrilling to find out the results!

5. Mixing up the batter

Fried chicken batter isn’t just slapping on all-purpose flour and calling it a day. Different fried chicken recipes call for different batter mixtures. Sometimes, it’s cornstarch. Other times, we use potato starch. Some mix whatever makes sense. Those on keto diets sometimes use almond flour. The more ambitious ones grind flaxseed to serve as a nuttier batter.

6. Choose a light-tasting oil

Cooking in a toaster oven still needs a bit of oil but only to grease the pan. It doesn’t need to be swimming but enough that you won’t end up fighting with the tray. What some do is they line the toaster oven’s tray with foil and then add some canola oil for good measure. Usually, half a tablespoon ought to make it easy enough. But it depends on how much you’re cooking.

Fried chicken at Home: Same amount of goodness but with less guilt

Fried chicken plays a big role in our lives—serving as the go-to meal when nobody knows what they want to eat. While it’s not good to eat it all the time, it’s sad knowing that our favorite go-to-guilty meal is currently in shortage. It may be annoying to clean up in the kitchen but bringing the kids along may help make the task a little easier.

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