Popeye's Fried Chicken

By Addie

"Popeye's Fried Chicken started in New Orleans in 1972. They sold "traditional" mild fried chicken but business was just O.K. They realized they'd have to sell a spicier alternative to their standard chicken recipe if they wanted to impress flavor-seeking New Orleanians. *Note - This is a copycat recipe, to expect it to be "exactly" like Popeye's is a little unrealistic."

Ingredients

• 1 frying chicken, with skin cut up
• 6 cups vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons white pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 3 eggs

Preparation

Step 1

Heat the oil over medium heat in a deep fryer or in a wide, deep pan on stove.

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, peppers, and paprika.

Break the eggs into a separate bowl and beat until blended.

Check the oil by dropping in a pinch of the flour mixture, If the oil bubbles rapidly around the flour, it's ready.

Dip each piece of chicken into the egg, then coat generously with the flour mixture.

Once the chicken is coated, it should be placed on a rack to allow the pieces to dry, which may take 20 to 30 minutes. Allowing the pieces to dry will provide for more even browning of the chicken.

To fry, heat oil in a heavy skillet over a medium-high burner until the oil is very hot. Place the chicken pieces in the hot oil, skin side down, one piece at a time. Leave enough space between pieces so that they are not crowded. This allows the pieces to cook and brown more evenly.

Continue to cook over a medium heat, turning until all sides are golden brown and the meat is cooked thoroughly.

As the pieces finish cooking, they should be removed from the pan and placed on a paper towel to allow grease to drain.
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REVIEWS:

Good stuff! Golden brown, crispy, great flavor! For those of you that need temps and times: 350 degrees worked great. Cooked the dark meat about 14-16 minutes. Light meat about 10-12. Kept it hot in a 200 degree oven while I cooked french fries. Thanks a bunch!

I just finished making a batch of nuggets with this recipe and I am LOVING it! I also double floured the nuggets and I added some Tony's Chachere's Creole Seasoning to the mix! While it isn't Popeye's it is better than any other recipe I have tried. The true test will come when the kids get home and try them! I am sure they will love them as well. Now, to figure out how I can effectively freeze these so that I can stop buying those nasty chicken nuggets! Thanks for the recipe!

This would have been the perfect chicken if I'd followed the directions better. I totally forgot the salt and only added 1 tablespoon of white pepper. I was afraid it would be too spicy. I will most surely make it again (the right way) because we love Popeye's Chicken and miss not being able to go there anymore. Thank you very much for a great recipe!

This is a great recipe... though it might not be aptly named... it does produce a great crispy and flavorful crust... I personally had a "hint of Popeyes"... whereas my husband said "not like Popeyes at all." That being said.... I've only made fried chicken 3 times... this time being one of those times... and by far, this was the best combination of flavors that held up to frying. I tasted the flour/spice combo and freaked out that it was going to be "SO" spicy... but it really mellowed with cooking.... you could taste it, but it wasn't overwhelming. I used peanut oil because that is all I had on hand... and I had soaked the chicken in milk over night... other than that, I followed the spices and egg dip... exactly. We all (including my crabby picky kids) enjoyed this thoroughly... and my kids and husband say "thank you" for helping me make a great fried chicken dinner!

Good recipe! Just a note to everyone...you need to use the white pepper to give it that Popeye's taste!!

This is great,but I made one little change that made all the difference in the world! I added I TBSP of Old Bay seasoning to the flour mixture. What a taste sensation!

Delicious chicken. I used only thighs and we loved it. We also liked the spicy gravy this made from the drippings in the pan. Yummy, thank you for sharing with us.

We like spicy foods and I've never had Popeye's so I personally can't comment on its similarity to that (My husband did say that it wasn't similar at all to Popeye's) . However, instead of having a well rounded spicy taste, the flavor was dominated by the white pepper, making it one dimensional and lacking in interest.

Overall the taste wasn't bad, but it's not a recipe I would try again.

This was very good. Not Popeye's, but still very good. I ran out of cayenne pepper and panicked so instead, I added half a bottle of Frank's Louisiana Hot Sauce to the egg and blended, then dipped the chicken in after poking holes in it. All in all, gave it a very nice kick. I cannot cook so when my husband said, man, this is really good, that meant it was really good. ;-)

Thank you so much for the recipe, gonna be a weekly favorite from here on.

I'm from New Orleans. This can't be the recipe. Popeye's marinates it's chicken in paprika, cayenne, salt or whatever. Also, I don't believe they would be dipping the chicken into a whole egg solution. Try again. The best Popeye's is in Louisiana. I moved to Vicksburg, and it is undoubtedly the worse fried chicken I have ever had at a Popeye's. Yet, the Popeye's in Jackson, MS, is OK, but still not as good as Louisiana ones.

This did not turn out like Popeye's for me, but it was MUCH better than the other Popeye's recipes on here. It didn't have the exact taste, the golden brown color ,and texture I get at Popeye's. I will just have to try a few more times to see if I made a mistake.

I think some of the problems where my own fault. I used Red Pepper rather than cayenne, and my deep fryer was really too small for the piece I tried to fry. I had to leave it in too long and it cooked kind of hard. I also experimented with a 2nd piece putting it in dry mix, then in wet, when back in dry. To me the crispiness was more like Popeye's, but the taste was more like KFC when I did that. I will try to skillet fry it. I will also see if cayenne pepper makes much of a difference in taste and maybe season salt rather than just plan salt. Doesn't Popeye's speak of marinating the chicken. I wish someone who worked at Popeye's was a member of this site. But the chicken was good. I'm not sure if I agree with the cook that a true clone is unrealistic. I'm sure we can get it pretty dang close. The only thing that would hold a clone maker back is not having one of those big restaurant deep fryers.

I loved this fried chicken but didn't think it came close to Popeyes; it needed more spice. This is a great recipe though!!! YUMMY After the first couple pieces I decided to make crunchier chicken because after teh drying phase they seemed gummy so I dropped them back into the flour mix and coated a second time. GREAT crunch!! And as soon as I took them out the grease onto the paper towels I seasoned them with Popeyes Cajun Sparkle and it was fabulous! And did remind me more of the chain's chicken. Thanks for a great recipe

This chicken was very good but not at anytime did it remind me of Popeye's.

Fantasic fried chicken recipe, and the only one I will be using in the future. Thanks for sharing :-)

This was not Popeye's, true, but it was so good! I my husband said even though it wasn't the same (he LOVES the original) that I was not to change a thing! The only different thing I did was soak the chicken in buttermilk. The flavor and texture of the breading was fantastic, and I think it's due to the drying stage. Thank you so much for this fantastic recipe!

I'm a big fan of Popeye's Chicken, and this was no Popeye's Chicken. It was, however, close and the best basic fried chicken recipe I've encountered. I'll be using it many times in the future.

Ok I did alter it a little trying to save a step. I used Tony's Creole Seasoning which I sprinkled on the chicken and left it "marinating" in the fridge all day. My mistake was too much of it. The sodium level was too much but the spice was just right. Next time if I use it I will cut back on the amount I sprinkled on the chicken. WHAT I LOVED was the crispness and non-greasy finished product. The drying time really helps to keep the flour on the chicken unlike all my previous experiences where the flour would not adhere. Thanks for sharing.

Having never tried Popeye's I cannot vouch for its closeness to the original but it was certainly tasty and my Texan other half was suitably impressed. I did make a couple of small alterations - used skinless tenderloins as that was what we had and smoked paprika for the same reason. I also added some crushed Salada biscuits ( similar to your saltines I think) for an extra crispy coating. An easy, yummy recipe - thank you.

I was in a time crunch for lunch and needed a quick fried chicken recipe, and this fit the bill (as it didn't require chicken to soak in brine or buttermilk, etc.) So glad I tried it, cos my family loved it! I fudged and didn't completely follow step #6...I just didn't have the time to allow the chicken to dry. My concerns that the chicken would pack too much heat for my toddler were unnecessary - she ate that drumstick 'til nary a piece of meat was left on the bone! Dunno how this compares to Popeye's, but it tastes great regardless. Cooked only drumsticks for lunch, so realized that I would not need that many eggs for coating. Lastly, the only change I would make is to cut back on the salt a little to better suit my family's taste. Thanks so much for posting - we really enjoyed it!

We enjoyed this for dinner tonight. I did make two chicken's and did the flourx4 and ran out of white pepper but the family really liked this so will make again. Thanks for a great recipe.

This recipe is HORRIBLE! It wasn't even slightly spicy, as you would think it would be per the white and cayenne peppers in it. Plain Fried Chicken with just salt and pepper is better than this! My condolences to the submitter of this recipe.

I used to eat at Popeyes two or three times a week when I first tried it. This recipe is not much like the Popeyes chicken I know, but it was definitely not bad. I probably wouldn't make it again, though, since I am on the lookout for the perfect copycat recipe.

Good chicken recipe but not exactly like Popeye's. I added more cayenne and white pepper to give it more zing! Otherwise, good chicken!

Luvvv me some Popeye's Chicken... so I HAD to try this recipe. I wasn't disappointed! It was extremely easy. I used peanut oil instead of vegetable oil, but otherwise I followed the recipe exactly. It definitely did have that Popeye's flavor, although it wasn't as intense a flavor as Popeye's. Perhaps this is attributed to their fryers getting hotter? I dunno. What I DO know is this: I'm not easily impressed with fried chicken recipes, but this one is gonna be MY new recipe! The chicken came out beautiful, juicy, and had a great tasting crust that was comparable to Popeye's. Fantastic!

I feel this is better than Popeye's chicken because it is fresher tasting. The only change I made was to cut the amount of salt in half. I've made it several times and discovered that all white pepper isn't created equal! The less expensive brands aren't spicy enough to give it that true Popeye's flavor. I would suggest going with a name brand such as McCormick - it costs more, but it really makes a difference. Thanks for posting this delicious recipe.

Not EXACTLY like Popeye's but very great recipe. I use it all the time!

Great recipe -- I modified by doubling the chicken and the flour, omitting the paprika, and using black pepper. My girlfriend is spice shy :) Came out great!!!!

Hi from Stina Wina the 9 year old chef. THis chicken was so incredibly tasty. We didn't use white pepper, so that was the only thing that was different from your recipe. I thought the chicken was very moist and was delicious and crispy.

GOOD stuff. Very easy and tasty. I have to say that I didn't think it was just like Popeye's, but who cares. Enjoy. I'd definitely make this again.