KFC crust

[carnivore]

pardon the length of this post--i've been thinking about this for quite awhile:

i love KFC, restaraunt chicken fried steaks, etc.
I've always wondered how in the world you get that fried breaded texture/taste/crust. I've fried a lot of stuff--I have a cheap fryer that i think i paid $60 for, and normally when i try to bread anything before frying it, it either all falls off in the fryer, or i have to put it on so thin that it doesn't fry to much of a crust.

I've heard that to reproduce KFC chicken, 90% of it is the pressure frying. I've also heard that you might be able to accomplish this in a stovetop pressure cooker. But 1) I can't afford/don't have room for a big ugly pressure fryer, and 2) I don't want a quart of boiling oil exploding in my face.

I've tried some recipes involving coating meat, seafood, onion rings, or whatever in cornstarch first, then making a batter, coating the food in it, and frying. This still does not form that "restaurant crust" that i want.
I can buy pre-breaded food that is pretty close to what i want to accomplish, so surely there must be a way i can reproduce this at home.
I've tried 20 batters, and probably invented another 20. Still not there.
Do i absolutely need a pressure fryer, or is there some other way??

thanks,

 

[kitchenelf]

Well, an iron Dutch oven will help as the iron heats higher than a regular pan. When I fry fish I use equal parts of flour and beer - let it sit on counter for about 3 hours then dip in DRY pieces of fish (onion rings and shrimp are also good in this). I'm sure chicken would be fine too. Just make sure whatever you are frying is VERY DRY. Also, put your onion rings in refrigerator overnight or in the freezer - the frying process will melt the onion and you will only have a coating to eat - but it's good! LOL

Coat as you put the pieces in the oil. When a piece of batter fries in a very short time your oil is ready. Of course, be careful! I actually keep a fire extinguisher near me when I deep fry (my husband is an insurance adjuster and I've typed too many reports about this topic!)

Good luck - You conquered grill marks - good luck with this!!!!

 

[Anonymous]

Carnivore, I had good luck with a batter I made including both corn starch (not a lot) and baking powder. (Plus the other regular batter stuff, of course.) Puffed up nicely, was very crisp and goledn. Dredged the pieces in flour before dipping in the batter and poppin them (gently) into a couple of inches of oil in a cast iron skillet. Oil was around 350. At that tempt the food has a chance to cook properly before the crust burns. I can't be more specific, because I didn't measure.

KFC ,ales much of its "secret recipe of herbs and spices", so I can't help you there. But a little experimentatin should result in some good flavors.

 

[Dianne]

how do get a breaded fried crust?

Easy. First, you need good dried breadcrumbs made from real bread, not bought breadcrumbs. Then, whatever you're breading must be fresh and properly prepared i.e. no skin on chicken, eggplants properly salted, squeezed of bitter liquid and dried in kitchen paper, and meat patted dry with kitchen paper. Then you beat eggs. You get flour, in a shallow dish. You get breadcrumbs, also in a shallow dish. You can season the breadcrumbs any which way you want so long as the seasoning is dry. You coat the dried ingredients in flour, dip in beaten egg, and then coat in breadcrumbs. This done, you fry GENTLY in olive oil, turning until both sides are golden - and crisp on the outside, tender on the inside.

This is the way we do it in Italy and it never fails!!!

ciao

dianne

 

[carnivore]

thanks guys. I'll let you know how it turns out.