Thomas Kellers Buttermilk Fried Chicken Recipes

Steps:

• For the brine: Combine all the ingredients in a large pot, cover, and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute, stirring to dissolve the salt. Remove from the heat and cool completely before using.
• Rinse the chickens and place the chickens in the cold brine and refrigerate overnight or for up to 12 hours. Remove the chicken from the brine and pat the chicken dry, removing any herbs or spices sticking to the skin.
• Bring the peanut oil to 340 degrees F. in a 6 quart saute pan.
• Mix the coating ingredients together in a bowl and place the buttermilk in a second container. Just before frying, dip each piece of chicken into the coating, patting off the excess, then into the buttermilk and back into the coating. Place the chicken on a parchment lined sheet tray.
• When the oil has reached the proper temperature, carefully lower the pieces of dark meat into the oil. The temperature of the oil will decrease. Adjust the heat as necessary to bring the oil to proper temperature. Fry the dark meat for about 13 minutes, to a deep golden brown, cooked throughout and very crisp. Remove the chicken to a tray lined with paper towels and sprinkle with salt.
• Carefully add the white meat to the oil and fry for 6 to 7 minutes until cooked.
• Remove to the tray, sprinkle with salt and turn off the heat under the oil. Let the chicken rest for a few minutes to cool slightly. It is very hot when it comes out of the oil.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Rinse chicken in cold water, then dry very well with paper towels, inside and out. The less it steams, the drier the heat, the better.
• Salt and pepper cavity, then truss bird with kitchen twine to help it cook more evenly. (See Note.).
• Now, salt chicken -- I like to rain salt over the bird so it has a nice uniform coating that will result in crisp, salty, flavorful skin (about 1 tablespoon). When it's cooked, you should still be able to make out salt baked onto the crisp skin.
• Season to taste with pepper.
• Place chicken in sauté pan or roasting pan and, when oven is up to temperature, put chicken in oven. I leave it alone -- I don't baste it. I don't add butter. You can if you wish, but I think this creates steam, which I don't want.
• Roast it until it's done (165 degrees in the thickest part of the thigh), 50 to 60 minutes.
• Remove from oven and add thyme to pan. Baste chicken with juices and thyme and let it sit for 15 minutes on cutting board.
• Remove twine. Discard wing tip. Separate middle wing joint and eat that immediately. Remove legs and thighs.
• I like to take off the backbone and eat one of the oysters, the two succulent morsels of meat embedded there, and give the other to the person I'm cooking with. But I take the chicken butt for myself. I could never understand why my brothers always fought over that triangular tip -- until one day I got the crispy, juicy fat myself. These are the cook's rewards.
• Cut breast down middle and serve it on the bone, with one wing joint still attached to each. The preparation is not meant to be super elegant.
• Slather meat with butter. Serve with mustard on the side and, if you wish, a simple green salad.