I have been craving fried chicken recently but it is a lot of trouble to make and I didn't exactly feel up to the task. I compromised by making an easy version with chicken tenders cut into nuggets - less mess and easier to gauge cooking time. These lack the added value of proper fried chicken where you can strip down the bones in order to get to every last piece of crisp and fragrant skin and bubble of crunchy batter but these were delicious and moreish in a snacky kind of way.
This served 2 people rather than my usual 4 so just multiply as needed. Also, though not as much oil as with traditional fried chicken, this does require more oil than my usual shallow fried recipes. Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and go for it.
1 lb chicken tenders
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup flour
1 Tbsp Old Bay (you can substitute paprika though you will miss out on some back notes and spice)
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp salt + more to sprinkle at the end
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 lemon
Cut the tenders into bite-sized nuggets. Toss in a bowl with the buttermilk and set aside for 20-30 minutes (no more or your chicken will be over-tenderized and turn to mush).
While the chicken is in its buttermilk bath, prepare the rest of the items that you will need. Mix the flour, Old Bay, thyme and salt in a large clean plastic bag. Line a platter with several thicknesses of paper towels. Measure the oil into a large skillet.
Remove the chicken pieces from the buttermilk and add them to the bag with the spiced flour. Toss and shake the bag until all of the chicken pieces are completely coated in flour on all sides. If you like extra crunchy chicken you can roll the floured chicken in any excess buttermilk remaining and then dredge in the flour a second time.
Heat the oil in the pan until a drop of water dropped on the surface immediately evaporates. Make sure that the temperature is at medium-low before starting to add the chicken to the pan.
Add the chicken to the pan in batches, making sure that you do not crowd the pan or the chicken will not crisp up. There is a more scientific way of doing this which involves thermometers etc., but in my experience the first batch of chicken takes 2 minutes on each side to cook through and turn an appealing shade of golden brown, and each subsequent batch will take about 2 minutes on the first side and 90 seconds on the second.
As each batch of chicken is cooked, place it on the paper towel lined platter to rest and remove excess oil.
Sprinkle lightly with salt before serving and serve with half a lemon on the side, with which to spritz your chicken if so desired, which is how we like it.
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