Food

I was seriously craving some Jollibee chicken, so I looked up copycat recipes. Found @beautifflyeats – this doesn’t taste anything like Jollibee, but I will admit – this recipe took my fried chicken to a whole new level. I ended up mixing her technique with this other guy’s Popeyes-style method (dry powders is key), plus what I’ve learned. Here’s the breakdown:

What I figured out:

• People claim their fried chicken is the best online is full of shit.
• Keep cooking, and experimenting. Every batch is another lesson.
• Adopt techniques and put your own twist on it. 
• Dill weed, vinegar powder, and buttermilk powder are a magic combo. Think ranch-pickle flavor.
• The tapioca starch and rice flour blend gave me a seriously thin, crispy crust – no clumps, no thick, doughy coating. 

Chicken

• When I get boneless thighs, I clean them up. Trim the extra fat and try to cut one thigh into two pieces. If I’m using bone-in, I remove the bone first and then clean them up.
• I prefer boneless for my fried chicken – It cooks more evenly. It’s hard to F up.

Wet/Dry Brine

• You can skip this step If you’re using chicken thighs.

Dry Dredge

• 1 cup flour
• 1 tsp salt

Wet Dredge

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup sparkling
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder, onion powder, white pepper,
•  tsp slap ya mama
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp msg
• 2 tbsp hot sauce

Dry Dredge

• 1 1/2 cup wheat flour
• 1/4 cup rice flour
• 2 tbsp tapioca starch
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp msg
• 1 tsp salt

Frying

• Deep fryer (get yourself a deep fryer!)
• I double fry at 350°F for about 4-5 minutes each fry.

Sauces

• Ranch
  • 2-3 tbs Mayo
  • Splash of milk (more if you like thinner)
  • 1 tbs dill weed
  • 1tsp onion powder
  • 1tsp garlic powder