Fried Chicken – with the most insanely crispy, thick craggy crust heavily seasoned with a KFC copycat “11 secret herbs and spices”! This recipe uses a Southern buttermilk marinade to make the flesh juicy all the way through, and a breading secret trick for how to make fried chicken with an ultra crunchy, nubbly crust.
Serve with French fries and potato with gravy for an epic homemade KFC experience at home.
Fried Chicken
I’m going to call it (obnoxious as it is) – this fried chicken is better than KFC. There’s not a trace of soggy skin anywhere (all you closet KFC lovers know exactly what I’m talking about!) and the crust is thicker and craggier.
Every inch of this crust is insanely crunchy, and there’s loads of those nubbly bits that get extra crunchy. The seasoning is satisfyingly spot on – strong but not outrageously overpowering – the buttermilk marinated flesh is tender and juicy all the way through, and the deep golden colour is sheer perfection.
Seriously, what kind of human being could resist a piping hot pile of freshly made fried chicken?? {Vegetarians are excused}
The seasoning for this fried chicken is a KFC copycat. 11 Secret Herbs & Spices!
What you need to make the best Fried Chicken
Here’s what you need.
11 Secret Herbs and Spices (lots of it). And not much else!
The Seasoning is a KFC copycat. There’s 1.5 tablespoons of pepper in it which sounds like a lot. But trust me, you need it for the KFC flavour and it doesn’t make it spicy. Also, remember that only a certain amount ends up stuck to the chicken itself!
Buttermilk – in true Southern style, the chicken is marinated in a salted buttermilk. Brilliant for tenderising the chicken and injecting it with salt;
Egg helps the flour stick better;
Cornflour / cornstarch – makes the crust crispy but not tough. Pretty standard inclusion in fried chicken breading;
Flour – just plain white, all purpose flour; and
Oil – vegetable, canola or peanut oil, for neutral flavour and ability to heat to the temperature needed without burning the chicken or the oil smoking.
No seasoning in marinade?
I don’t put Seasoning into the buttermilk marinade. Reason being that the crust is quite heavily seasoned (it’s unsatisfying if it’s not flavoured enough) so if the chicken flesh is also seasoned, it’s just too much of the same flavour.
It’s just tastier to have that awesome contrast of juicy chicken flavour inside (salted but not flavoured) and the wickedly crunchy, seasoned crust on the outside. It’s the KFC way!
How to make Fried Chicken
And here’s how to make it (video below super helpful I think!):
Marinate chicken overnight in buttermilk brine – this salts the flesh all the way through and makes it beautifully tender and juicy (also gives you room for error in cook time);
Drizzle some brine in the seasoned flour and rub in to make lumps = extra nubbly craggy bits on crust. 🌟Secret trick that makes the crust so epic!🌟
Coat chicken in flour then fry until golden.
How long does it take chicken to fry?
Thighs and drumsticks take 8 minutes, or until the internal temperature in centre of thickest part is 75°C / 167°F. Breast takes around 7 minutes (internal temperature at thickest part 65°C / 150°F).
Reusing the oil
Typically, oil used for deep frying can be reused 3 times or so once it’s been cleaned. However, I find that for Fried Chicken, it’s usually only good for one more batch of Fried Chicken or similarly flavoured food. I think the oil just gets too tainted by the heavily flavoured breading and while the oil can be cleaned of all the bits in it, you can’t remove the flavour.
To remove impurities, I find the best and easiest way is a Cook’s Illustrated method using a cornflour/cornstarch and water method, cooked in the oil over low heat until it solidifies and captures all the impurities. Strain the cornflour “jelly”, then store the oil for another use. (PS Using a fine strainer isn’t good enough to filter the oil after this recipe, you’d need to use a coffee filter or similar which takes ages. But for other fried recipes like Honey Chicken and Sweet & Sour Pork, straining is fine).
What to serve with fried chicken
For the full homemade KFC experience, serve it with Coleslaw*, chips, KFC copycat potato and gravy.
For a Southern meal, add a side of steamed or grilled corn, cornbread, Slaw, Potato Salad and Southern Baked Beans. A fully loaded plate – my style!
* If you or your hips are anti mayo, try the RecipeTin No Mayo Coleslaw – it’s very, very good!
Some great sides for fried chicken!
I know deep frying is an effort. Preparing, cleaning up, disposing of the oil.
And – well, you know. My hips prefer me to avoid fried foods. 😩
Therefore I don’t deep fry often. So when I do, I make sure it’s worth it.
THIS is worth it!!!
Serve with French fries and potato with gravy for an epic homemade KFC experience at home.
– Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Fried Chicken – ultra craggy crispy crust!
Ingredients
- 1.8 kg/ 3.6lb bone in, skin on small thighs (< 200g/7oz), drumsticks, whole wings, breast (< 200g/7oz) (Note 1)
Buttermilk marinade:
- 1 cup buttermilk (Note 2 for sub)
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 egg
Fried Chicken Breading (Note 9):
- 2 1/4 cups flour , plain / all purpose
- 3/4 cup corn flour / cornstarch
KFC 11 Secret Herbs and Spices (Note 9):
- 3 tsp salt
- 3/4 tsp celery salt
- 1.5 tbsp black pepper (Note 2)
- 1.5 tsp sweet paprika (ie. not hot or smoked)
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper , optional
- 1.5 tsp onion powder
- 3 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp mustard powder
- 3/4 tsp ginger powder
- 1.5 tsp dried thyme
- 1.5 tsp dried oregano
To fry:
- 1.5 – 2 litres / quarts vegetable oil (or canola or peanut, Note 8 for re-use)
Instructions
Buttermilk Marinade Chicken:
- Mix Marinade in a bowl until salt dissolves.
- Pour over chicken in ziplock bag, massage to coat chicken. Press out excess air, seal, refrigerate 12 to 24 hours, turning once or twice.
- Pour chicken and marinade into large bowl.
Breading mixture:
- Whisk together Breading and all KFC Secret Herbs & Spices.
- Drizzle 4.5 tablespoons of Marinade into flour mixture. Use fingers to rub in so you get lots of pea sized lumpy bits all throughout (this creates extra super crunchy craggy bits).
- Spread out in a shallow dish or pan (easier to work with).
Prepare to cook (work in specified order of steps):
- Preheat oven to 80°C/175°F and place rack on tray – to keep chicken warm. (Note 3)
- Add oil to a wide, heavy based pot to a depth of 6 cm / 2.5 ” (my 26cm/10.5″ cast iron pot = 1.75L/quarts oil, Note 4)
- Heat oil over medium to medium high heat to 180°C/350°F – maintain temp as best you can (Note 5).
Breading:
- Cooking order: Start with thighs and drumsticks, wings next and cook breast last. (Note 6).
- Squidge a piece of chicken in remaining marinade, place in flour.
- Coat well, pressing very firmly to adhere. Transfer to plate.
- Coat 2 or 3 more pieces – just for one cooking batch, covering oil surface in single layer. (Note 7)
Frying:
- Carefully place chicken in oil – it will bubble energetically but it will not spit.
- Once chicken is in, oil temperature should drop to 150°C/300°C – adjust heat to target this.
- DO NOT TOUCH chicken for 2 minutes – to let the crust bond with the chicken skin. After this, you can move them around but oil should be deep enough that you do not need to flip (but you can if you want!).
- Thighs and drumsticks – cook for 8 minutes (wings for 5 minutes), or until deep golden brown and internal temperature at thickest part is 75°C / 167°F.
- Breast – fry for 6 minutes or until internal temperature at thickest part is 65°C / 150°F (time depends on size).
- Place onto rack and keep warm in oven. Repeat with remaining chicken, coating each batch just prior to cooking.
- Serve immediately!
- Classic sides: Coleslaw, KFC copycat potato and gravy, steamed or grilled corn, cornbread or soft rolls, fries, potato salad, Southern Baked Beans!
Recipe Notes:
- Might seem like a lot of pepper, but it’s key to KFC flavour and doesn’t make it spicy. Remember that not much of the seasoning actually ends up on each piece of chicken.
- Hot & Spicy version – just add 2 tsp cayenne pepper into the breading! That will give it a nice buzz (but won’t blow your head off)
- There is more breading coating flour than you need, so you’ll throw out 1 cup or so. As wasteful as it sounds, I’ve tried using less and it gets messy/hard with the last pieces. So I conceded and upped the breading quantity – because this recipe is all about the crust!
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
He was booted out while I was deep frying. But other than that, he was firmly planted next to the shoot table for every second while I was filming and photographing this chicken!!!
I searched and searched for a good fried chicken recipe, both in terms of ingredients and instructions, and this is definitely the winner. The first time I made it, my son’s friend was over for dinner, and he loved it too. He is leaving for college in a week and asked me if he could come over for fried chicken again before he left. I made it last night, and everyone left the table happy. Thanks Nagi!
Wow! this is the crunchiest fried chicken i’ve ever made. We loved it. I did amp up the spices a little since we love spice but the texture was incredible! We shallow fried chicken (skin-on thighs only) for 2 minutes per side and then used the airfryer for 10 minutes at 300F. Turned out perfect! Thank you so much for this fantastic recipe! XO
Awesome results first time, thank you for sharing this recipe!
Goes so well with Tomato Pie.
a dinner made in heaven if you add corn on the cob !!!
AMAZING! I can confirm that using gluten free flour works very VERY well to make these gluten free. My days of sighing wistfully whenever I walk past KFC are over.
I’m surprised that you didn’t include white pepper in the seasoning blend. It’s really essential to the flavour of KFC.
Out*frigging*standing! I suck at making fried chicken. This recipe was spot on what I wanted in fried chicken. Especially the crispy bits on it.
Amazing!! My husband loves fried chicken and buys KFC once every few months. The house always smells afterwards and he always feel really greasy. This fried chicken was tasty, moist and didn’t have an oily feel. Will making this once a month for our take out night!!!
As always Nagi, you hit the nail on the head with this one! I think I’ve now tried around 65% of your recipes, and not a single one has lacked.
For others who intend to make this for the first time, a couple of pointers that will avoid some of the other issues folks are having:
– Salt: don’t use fine table salt! It will be over salted. I use Maldon sea salt flakes and it comes out perfect when done according to recipe.
– Herbs and spices: if you are not getting the full flavour hit you expect, it will likely come down to your dried thyme and oregano. Use a mortar and pestle to grind them down first, then measure the quantities according to recipe.
– Oil temperature: this is actually quite critical to ensure the breading doesn’t overcook, which ensures the flavours don’t get cooked out. I found that adjusting the temperature down slightly for the thighs etc, and slightly increasing the cook time, made a big difference to the end result. Maintaining the temperature is crucial, and can be done, albeit with some extra effort.
– Oil type: Having made this with two different oils (vegetable and peanut), the peanut oil hands down had the best finish.
Happy cooking! 🙂
VERY GREAT!!! BEST MEAL EVER!!! HAVING THIS WITH KOOL AID IS AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great recipe, lots of compliments especially when eaten together with mashed potato and your easy KFC gravy. Re the breading wastage, I mix up a batch and before I put the chicken in it, I reserve around a cup of the breading in a ziplock bag, and what I don’t use I keep for the next cook up
Fantastic! Perfect timing for the cooking, it came out tender and juicy. Thanks so much!
Does this recipe work ok using Gluten free flour?
We’ve used it with the standard GF flours – Woolies “free from” range, and also Well & Good – and they’ve both been delicious! 😋
BEST FRIED CHICKEN KFC COPYCAT RECIPE EVER. OMG WHY IS IT ONLY 4.9 STARS!
Making this again today. The seasoning and well, the whole recipe is delicious ! We have a very fussy eater in our house and when I pull out the chicken ready to marinade they get VERY excited for crispy chicken. It’s definitely one that gets fought over as to who ate how many peices of chicken each. It’s the best. Thank you 😁
Made this 3 times now and it is far, far better than buying a KFC bucket from our local KFC branch which always fails to dissapoint.
So thank you for this bang on recipe!
Nagi – I love you and all of your recipes. This one was flavourful, but oh my goodness the salt! I am definitely going to make this recipe again but shall at least halve the salt. Wish I had read the reviews in regard to salt before I cooked! Still a great dish!
For those wondering, yes, you can cook this in an air fryer and it turns out great! I’m sure frying it will take it to the next level but for those being more careful with fat intake, this is a great option. I can fit 4 pieces (wing/drumsticks) into my air fryer in a silicone tray, coat liberally with spray oil, 15 minutes at 180c on one side, flip, spray and another 15 minutes. Tastes amazing and is so juicy!!!
I was sceptical at first, but this is a great recipe. My KFC craving partner and son said that it was better than KFC. I used drumsticks, thighs and tenderloins and also made your Coleslaw which I love. Thanks Nagi!
All the ingredients came together great. Cooking was no issue. The taste…. NOT even close to a KFC. Too much of oregano taste for one thing. Spices are so way off. I just wished it were a home run. Sadly a waste of time.