Weeknight Buttermilk Fried Chicken

By

Recipe courtesy Melissa d'Arabian
Show: Ten Dollar Dinners
Episode: Dixie on a Dime

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Ingredients

  • 1 chicken, cut up into 10 pieces
  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • 1 tablespoon red hot pepper sauce
  • 2 teaspoons salt, divided
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
  • 2 teaspoons granulated garlic
  • 2 teaspoons paprika
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • Vegetable oil, for frying

Preparation

Step 1

Marinate the chicken in a mixture of the buttermilk, pepper sauce, and 1 teaspoon of the salt in a large glass bowl. Let sit for 8 hours or overnight in the refrigerator, turning the chicken pieces over at least once. Once ready to cook, remove the chicken from the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Remove the chicken from the buttermilk and blot the excess liquid with paper towels. Mix the flour, remaining 1 teaspoon salt, breadcrumbs, granulated garlic, paprika, and black pepper in a large bowl. In a large frying pan, heat 1-inch of oil over medium-high heat. Working in batches, toss the chicken in the flour, making sure the chicken is fully coated and dry. Fry the chicken 3 minutes on each side. Then transfer each piece of chicken to a baking sheet lined with a cooling rack and bake until the internal temperature is 170 degrees F, about 15 more minutes.
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REVIEWS:

Super good, even though I was only able to let the chicken sit in the buttermilk for two and a half hours because we planned poorly. But otherwise, this was delicious. My family made sure to tell me to make it again. The best part was I could set it up, and my husband finished it up in the oven while I did an errand. Super easy, and super good!

Followed the recipe exactly. Flavor wise the chicken was good but was not crispy enough. I agree with other reviews,15 minutes were not enough. I baked for additional 15 minutes total 30 minutes for the chicken to be fully cooked.

This chicken was delicious!!! Very juicy and packed with flavor.

I did not like the end result at all. I followed the recipe to a "T" and the chicken was way under cooked; 15 mins in the oven is too short of a time. I ended up baking for an additional 20 minutes. I would NOT recommend this recipe to anyone, not even my worst enemy. On the bright side, the color was perfect. S/N: I've used Paula Deens' "Southern Fried Chicken" recipe several times before and I WOULD recommend that recipe to anyone...even with hers being fully fried it is not greasy at all and the flavor is incredible.

Awesome, best chicken I've made yet! I used boneless skinless chicken breasts and cut them in half. For breadcrumbs I used panko. Will definitely keep this recipe. Thanks Melissa!!!!!

Very Good and very tasty. I did it the hard way though. I dredge in flour, then in milk again and then in breadcrumbs. You can also use egg instead. Melissa I have been cooking for many years and raised five children, worked in food service for 35 years. Your show is a breath of fresh air and easy for beginners ,as well as fits the American budget of today when things are changing ever so rapidly. Your personality lends a big flare to the show as well. I wish you all the best !!!!

Going to give it 5 stars for cooking method. Less stovetop mess, frees up a burner and you can control browning and degree of doneness in the oven. Results were crunchy, moist and delicious. But Melissa, you need to tweak the recipe to reflect the size of the cut up chicken. It just says 1 chicken cut into 10 pieces. Previous reviews were right, 15 minutes in the oven is not enough for larger chicken pieces. I did 4 large thighs from 2 cut up 6 lb. chickens. It took 30-35 minutes in the oven but it was worth it!

You rock Melissa! I've been a fan from the very beginning. Thanks for this cooking method after 40 years of frying chicken the hard way. I think this would be killer with your potato torte, hot or cold, it's a favorite of my entire extended family.

Firstly I incorporated some of my own dried herbs... oregano and thyme to the buttermilk. I was very shocked at how the canola oil spattered everywhere (I have never really fried anything before.... I used drumsticks and it took a good 45 minutes to cook in the oven. My husband liked it but I was disappointed... I will try it again in future

You can cook, girl!

Turned out ok, will have to add my own spin on this. Couldn't taste the hot sauce at all would add more next time and I think I would prefer to just use a deep fryer.

I was getting ready to just fry the chicken, but then I looked at this receipe and decided to follow it. Finished the chicken in the oven and it came out moist and crispy. Very tasty.

This is the first real attempt at cooking. It's such a great recipe. You can really taste the buttermilk, and the spices really add a kick. I'm really pleased with how it came out!

I loved the recipe It was easy to do and to make changes so that my nephew who is allergic to gluton was able to eat I believe the crispyness was from putting the chicken on a rack when baking it I love to watch your show and have used several of your recipes I liked them all

This recipe is fabulous. Chicken is tender, tasty, easy to pull together. I was afraid of Southern Fried Chicken. Not anymore! My family loves this recipe. Thank you, Melissa!

Buttermilk, salt and 8 hours or overnight is the magic ingredient for any tasty chicken. I lived in Germany for over 3 years. I came across another american who appreciated american food. Well, she had made a similar recipe with the above ingredient and it was the most tender, juicy and tasty chicken I ever had and. . . she only used flour with garlic, onion powder and salt and pepper. Therefore, I'm sure with the ingredient that Melissa used could only exemplify the dish! I think this is a southern way of cooking. I am from the Northeast and I thought it is an excellent dish! Enjoy!!!

Hi Ingrid. My guess is the reason that your chicken wasn't crispy is because the oil wasn't at a high enough temperature when you fried it.
One tip that I learned from a culinary school student was to dip the chicken in some egg wash first, and then dredge it in the flour and fry. I tried it with this recipe and it worked marvelously!!

Pretty good! I loved the taste in this recipe but after 2 separate attempts, couldn't get the chicken crispy. What am I doing wrong?

Quite good and a fast fix. I will admit that I forgot the bread crumbs, but it was still very good. I used boneless chicken breast and boneless thighs. I will make this again.

My husband has been begging me to fix him fried chicken since we got married almost 4 years ago and I finally gave it a try after watching this episode. It was so easy and delicious. The hot pepper sauce adds the perfect amount of heat and the bredding was crunchy and had wonderful flavor. Tbe breast pieces that came in my package of chicken were much larger than the legs and thighs and took almost 30min to cook, but the dark meat was perfectly done in 15min. My husband is thrilled that we can now add fried chicken to our weeknight meal options.


My wife and I always record/watch “Ten Dollar Dinners”. We sometimes comment to ourselves that she should not be bound by that dollar limit. Melissa said on the show and in the recipe to use a cooking thermometer to test when the chicken is done to 170 degrees. Eyeballing a piece of chicken to see if it is done is imprecise, especially if using a new recipe. Everyone that is even half-serious about cooking should have a thermometer for testing internal temperatures of food.

This was outstanding! Because I'd read the other reviews I put it in the oven for 25 minutes which was too long. Not sure what size pieces of chicken the other folks are using, but we don't really do white meat so I did a pack of legs and a pack of thighs. It would have been perfect at 15ish minutes in the oven. It was definately a keeper and for a weeknight, an easy fried chicken recipe. Crunchy, super moist, and flavorful!!! Another winner!!!

I made this recipe today and it was very good. I definitely think you have to put in the oven longer than what the recipe calls for. It's more like 30-35 minutes. Other than that it was great! Tip: make your own buttermilk. Put 1/2 to 1 cup store bought buttermilk in quart jar and add enough milk to make 1 quart. Let it sit on the counter 24 hours, then refrigerate. reserve enough butter milk to make the next batch. I have made it using 1/2 cup and 1 cup, both seem to work fine. On cooler days like early spring or winter I put it in the oven with only the oven light on to give it a bit more warmth. For 1/2 quart reduce each ingredient by half.
Haven't made this chicken recipe, but it sounds good.


My experience is that it needs a longer frying time per side, about 4 min. per side work well. The baking time needs to be greatly increased to closer to 30 min., not only 15. I would increase the amount of salt in the buttermilk marinade to 1 T for overnight, 1 1/2 for 8 hours, 1 T for a few hours. This applies to a 5 # chicken, so if yours is much smaller, adjust. As far as "copying" Ina goes, recipes can't by copyrighted (which is why secret recipes are guarded so carefully. Besides that, the frying then baking is a technique! Would you accuse Ina of "copying" Paula Deen because she said to saute one sliced onion until lightly browned? Get real. Enter reviews that help others, not silly insubstantial insults Marie NYC. Ina would never claim to have invented it!

I see No Need in being RUDE (Marie NYC. If you can't say anything nice, then don't say anything.
I sure don't see your face on a Cooking Show.
Your a very rude person.
Bev in Ohio

My husband and I both enjoyed this buttermilk fried chicken. The flavor was great; very moist I might add. The easiest recipe I've found in a while for chicken. My husband is begging for it again. Great job, Melissa.

This chicken for us took longer than the specified time and my crust came off in the oil. Also my chicken was greasy. Maybe I used too much oil. Won't be having this again.

Excellent, moist, favorful and quick to prepare. I put the chicken in to marinate, made the coating mix, then when it was time for dinner, a quick fry and into the oven. Very good and very easy to prepare! What's not to love!

I used panko as was suggested by Sharon, because I have them in my cupboard. Great recipe and even though I am not an experienced cook, I am always able to look like a pro when I follow Melissa's recipes exactly.

Interesting take on fried chicken. And can be oven baked if desired. Loved it. A take on a southern favorite. Thanks!

This was really a good recipe. Next time I will try panko instead of bread crumbs --- my personal preference. The dual cooking method was a great idea. THANKS, Melissa.

As for jratiff3 --- we have free speech in the USA but you need to choose your audience when expressing it. If you don't like someone then just don't watch the show. I'm on here for recipes not a popularity contest. In my opinion, Melissa RULES and I'm thankful and impressed that she is on FN.

jratiff 3, we are not interested in your personal opinion, the chicken turned out really good and moist. I am a good cook and am always learning something new from Melissa, she is very talented. I only hope FN does not restrict her for a ten dollar budget and just let her cook. One of the best shows on FN.

This is a really delicious and fast way to enjoy the taste of real fried chicken. There is an all oven method that I like, but the crust not like "fried" chicken. I only gave this recipe 4 stars because I thought the brine was a bit thick (I usually use a combination of water and buttermilk and needed a bit of sugar. Sugar in a brine makes the flesh taste fresher (not sweeter.

This method of frying then baking is GREAT it turned out crispy and was some of the best chicken i had in a while ty melissa

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