Simple Fried Chicken

Rinse the pieces of chicken and set them on a large plate. Sprinkle the pepper and salt on each side of the chicken. Add the flour to a shallow bowl and dredge a piece of the chicken in flour, or do two pieces at a time if your bowl is large enough. Generously coat the chicken in flour on all sides. Dredge only the amount of chicken that will fit into your skillet at one time. Set aside on a plate for a moment while you heat the oil.

Heat a large skillet on medium heat and add the oil so that it’s about ½ inch deep in the skillet. Depending on the diameter of the skillet you may need 1 ½ to 2 cups of oil. Sprinkle a tiny bit of the flour in the oil and if it sizzles it means that it’s hot enough. Add the pieces of flour-coated chicken to the oil.

Continue to dredge as many pieces of chicken in the flour that will fit into the skillet. Depending on the size of your skillet you may need to make a second batch of dredge to finish frying the remaining pieces of the chicken.

Using a cooking or carving fork, turn the chicken regularly as it turns a golden color. Try to poke the fork into the outside edges of the skin when turning the chicken rather than in the middle of the meat (so the juices don’t run out). When turning the chicken, a cooking fork tends to keep the crispy skin looking nicer than when using tongs. If the oil starts to bubble quickly or splatter out of the skillet, turn the heat down just a bit.

Keep an eye on the chicken to see if it’s turning a dark brown color (rather than a golden color) or cooking too quickly. If so, turn the heat down just a bit. Lay a small cooling rack over a large plate or baking sheet and set aside for a moment.

Continue to let the chicken cook until all sides are a medium to dark golden color. As the pieces of chicken are done cooking (about 3o to 40 minutes), remove them from the skillet and lay them on top of the cooling rack. The larger pieces of chicken like the breasts may take the longest time to cook. Repeat with the remaining chicken.

Serve warm or cold. Delicious served warm with mashed potatoes and gravy, or cold for lunch, or as a late night snack.