Jeff prefers chicken without bones, so I searched out a country fried chicken recipe and found this one on favfamilyrecipes.com. I’ve made it several times, and it’s great. The breading does often fall off while you’re eating it. But it’s delicious. The gravy is also very good, but you need to incorporate every bit of brown that you can get out of the oil so that it has the most flavor. It takes a lot of time, but it’s nice to make every once in a while.
If you’re making this gluten free, of course just switch out the flour for gluten free flour. It turns out delicious. The picture below is gluten free. I’ve even made it dairy free by adding 2 Tbsp. lemon juice to 2 c. almond milk for the buttermilk and using almond milk in the gravy.
Make it a meal with:
- Mashed Potatoes
- Corn
- Green Salad or Apple Slices
Country Fried Chicken
Very delicious, but it takes a fair amount of time and milk.
Ingredients
- 4 Chicken Breasts, halved
- 2 c. Buttermilk (or 2 c. milk + 2 Tbsp. lemon juice)
- 3 Eggs
- 1/2 c. Milk
- 2 c. Flour (or gluten free flour with xanthan gum)
- 1 Tbsp. Paprika
- 1/2 tsp. Cayenne Pepper
- 1/2 Tbsp. Garlic Powder
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Oil for frying
Gravy
- 1/4 c. Reserved Pan Drippings (get every bit of brown that you can)
- 1/4 c. Reserved Flour Mixture
- 2 c. Chicken Broth or Stock (or 2 tsp. Members Mark Chicken Base and 2 c. water)
- 1/2 c. Milk
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Directions
Carefully pound each chicken breast half flat without tearing, with each chicken piece about the size of your hand or slightly smaller. Place chicken in a gallon bag and pour buttermilk over. Press as much air as you can out of the bag, seal, and place in refrigerator for at least 3 hours (or overnight).
In a shallow dish, whisk together eggs and milk, set aside. In a separate shallow dish, stir flour, paprika, cayenne, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Set aside about 1/4 c. of this dry mixture for the gravy later.
Remove chicken from Ziploc, shake off excess buttermilk, and dredge each piece evenly with four mixture. Lightly shake off excess, dip in egg/milk mixture, then place back in flour mixture, giving it a double coating of flour. Place chicken on a cookie sheet until ready to fry.
Preheat 1/4 inch of oil in electric skillet until reaches 350. Add each piece of chicken to the oil without overcrowding (you may have to do this in batches) for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until crispy and golden. Place cooked chicken on a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet to catch excess oil. Place in warm oven (about 200-degrees) until ready to serve.
For gravy: Drain off all but about 1/4 c. of the oil from the pan. Whisk reserved flour mixture into the oil until the flour has absorbed the oil. Slowly whisk in the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Whisk constantly and reduce heat to a simmer. Once the gravy starts to thicken, slowly add milk (you may not need all of it) to thin to desired consistency, whisking constantly. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve over chicken and mashed potatoes.
Mitchell Meals 