Spicy Fried Chicken With Honey and Pickles
A quick and easy recipe for fried chicken with a spicy kick, from chef Mark Steuer of Carriage House and the Bedford in Chicago
The Chef: Mark Steuer
His Restaurants: Carriage House and the Bedford, both in Chicago
What He's Known For: Refining Chicagoans' understanding of regional Southern cooking. Bringing serious interpretations of South Carolina's Lowcountry cuisine up north.
CHEF MARK STEUER created this streamlined fried chicken recipe, his third Slow Food Fast contribution, with the demands of a busy restaurant in mind. Lucky for the rest of us, it translates to a quick and tasty option for home kitchens, too.
"We went through 10 trials, me and my two sous-chefs," Mr. Steuer said. "What we ended up with, while not as spicy as a Nashville hot"—the fiery style indigenous to the city of the same name—"is definitely moving in that direction."
A generous hand with seasoning is a signature of Mr. Steuer's cooking. Here copious quantities of cumin, cayenne, Tabasco and paprika eliminate the need for marinating—and skipping that traditional step accomplishes more than just saving time. "I find that when you marinate the chicken, the extra moisture turns to steam and the breading doesn't stick as well. I hate it when there is not enough crunch," he said.
These boneless chicken thighs, breaded and fried to a crisp, come with bread-and-butter pickles and a drizzle of honey to temper the spices' kick. Perfect for a dinner party, they're also an easy weeknight meal for any cook who enjoys a little heat.
—Kitty Greenwald
Spicy Fried Chicken With Honey and Pickles
Total Time: 35 minutes Serves: 4
4 cups canola oil
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons onion powder
1 tablespoon cayenne
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and lightly crushed
2 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons hot sauce
4 boneless chicken thighs (about 1½ pounds)
Bread-and-butter pickles, for serving
Honey, for drizzling
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1. Pour oil into a Dutch oven fitted with a deep-frying thermometer. Set pot over medium-low heat and warm oil to 300 degrees.
2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix flour with salt, garlic and onion powders, cayenne, paprika and cumin until combined. Divide seasoned flour between two wide bowls. In a third wide bowl, whisk buttermilk with hot sauce until combined.
3. Working with one chicken thigh at a time, pat meat dry then dredge through flour mixture, dip in buttermilk, and dredge through second bowl of flour. Repeat process a second time so each piece is well coated.
4. Working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding pot, carefully place chicken into heated oil. Fry chicken, flipping once during cooking, until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees and exterior is well crisped and deep golden, about 14 minutes per batch. Adjust heat as necessary to keep oil temperature steady throughout frying. Place fried chicken on a paper-towel-lined tray. Serve chicken with pickles and a drizzle of honey.
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I've used buttermilk to tenderize the chicken, but I've never seen it used just to dredge the flour. Why buttermilk instead of regular milk for that purpose?
Very good, except too salty for our taste. Recommend reducing salt from 4TBSP to 1 TBSP. Also I cut the Cayenne and hot sauce in half, and had just the right spice for us. Bread and butter pickle chips were a great complement. Thanks for sharing this recipe!