Ingredients

  • About 10 pieces chicken (I like drumstick and thighs because they are juicy and cook evenly and do not dry out like breasts.)
  • 1 large yellow onion, sliced into rings
  • 1 quart buttermilk
  • 4 shakes hot sauce (Valentina is my choice)
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, plus additional
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, plus additional
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, plus additional
  • Salt
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • Vegetable oil, for frying
  • 1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Preparation

 

 

In a large bowl, add chicken and onions, and enough buttermilk to cover. Mix in several dashes of hot sauce to your taste, a shake of onion and garlic powder, a few pinches of cayenne pepper if you like it extra spicy and a generous pinch of salt. Soak chicken and sliced onions in buttermilk for 30 minutes or up to a day.

 

 

In a paper grocery bag, add flour, 1/2 teaspoon each of onion and garlic powder, and cayenne pepper, about 3 large pinches of salt and black pepper.

 

 

Heat about inch of vegetable oil in an iron skillet or deep skillet on medium-high. (Just enough to cover the chicken halfway.) Have a lid nearby and a fire extinguisher when frying! Drain chicken and onions from buttermilk. Shake chicken and onions in bag with flour-spice mixture until coated.

 

 

When the oil is hot enough to make a pinch of flour sizzle, place chicken in oil and sprinkle a few of the onions in as well, being careful to not overcrowd the pan. If an onion is stuck to a piece of chicken don't separate them.....whoever gets that piece is lucky! Fry on each side about 10-14 minutes depending on how large the pieces are or until golden brown. Remove with tongs and drain on a wire rack. Remove onions as they look done (they burn easily) and drain on a paper towel. Taste an onion. If it needs more salt, add a sprinkle on the hot chicken and onions before they cool.

 

 

Before serving, add a sprinkle of chopped parsley over the chicken and onions, and serve with a side of honey, ranch dressing or hot sauce. I like this meal with a crunchy salad and some skillet cornbread. Save some chicken to eat cold the next day!