how do I get the breading on my chicken to look like KFC?

Question

How do I get the breading on my chicken fingers to look like KFC. I have tried just flour, flour & milk, flour, milk and eggs, and nothing looks like KFC. My crust ends up thinning out and not tasting like I want to.

Answer 1

dip the chicken in buttermilk mixed with 1 egg and salt and pepper. Then batter it in your flour and DO NOT SHAKE EXCESS OFF!! This will give you really crispy fried chicken...just be careful to cook on medium...you dont want the crust to get done before the chicken does!! LOL

Another hint to keep your batter from coming off.....do not touch the chicken until it done if you deep frying....or dont touch it except to turn in a skillet. The more you disturb it, the more likely your batter will flake off.

Answer 2

I saw a show on the Food Channel yesterday, I didn't pay much attention to it, but as far as I can remember, they pass it twice, first through a buttermilk mixture (you could put some egg there, but I don't remember if there was any in the show I saw) and second a flour mixture; then repeat. The flour is not just flour but also has cornmeal in it.
I don't know about the seasonings though, but it tastes spicy, so I'm guessing there's some garlic in it, and of course pepper (lots apparently) and salt.
And then just get a really good deep frier (Colonel Sanders supposedly used a pressure cooker for doing his).

Answer 3

You know, I don't know the exact answer for this, but what I was going to suggest is that I know there is a cookbook out there, which has recipes which are supposed to be all similar to fast food/restaurant recipes that you can replicate at home. KFC not only uses a particular mix of flour, milk, etc like you said, but also a particular blend of spices in their batter. Try to search for that cookbook on amazon.com or something and I KNOW it has the KFC recipes in it.

Answer 4

Sift your flour first with a little white corn meal, wash your chicken well, damp dry. Put your dry mixtures in a brown paper bag, season you dry mixtures with seasoning salt and fresh cracked pepper. Cover all pieces well, shake off excess, put directly in (canola) 360 to 375 degree. Try not to overfill your fryer because the temperature will drop and create bad frying, try cooking 4 to five pieces at a time. Good luck!

Answer 5

The flour is seasoned with black pepper and MSG. (7 herbs and spices? not really) They use a special pressure cooker made to use oil not water. Dip the chicken in flour, then water, then flour. Let it sit (not stacked) for a few minutes, then fry in hot oil.

Answer 6

Based on your crust "thinning out" I will assume you are after an extra crispy coating or at least a thick breading that adheres to the chicken.I have found that adding baking powder along with the spices of your liking to the flour and then adding a small amount of milk to the flour mixture and mixing it into a wet sand like texture gets it done KFC style.The first half of this process is to make a simple egg wash mixture of a slightly beaten egg(s) and milk.Clean and soak chicken in the eggwash for at least a half hour(you want the chicken at room temp before frying and this is the best way to accomplish the task using fresh chicken,milk and egg from the fridge.) and then remove chicken peice by peice and coat with seasoned flour and set on wire rack.Deep fry in 365-375 oil until goldin brown.
One thing to keep in mind here is that KFC deep fry's their chicken in a pressure cooker called a broaster.Sort of like a convection oven that has forced hot air circulating throughout the oven resulting in the elimination of cold spots.A broaster does the same but with pressure applied to the oil, and the results are the same.Origanaly the colonel himself used stove top pressure cookers in all of his restaraunts.I don't recomend the purchase of a stove top pressure cooker beacause you can't controll the heat applied to it unless you are a seasoned deep fry master.hopefuly you are using a fry daddy or equivelent counter top deep fryer.If you are using a dutch oven on top of the stove then God bless you.I use a Euro-Pro counter top deep fryer.
All great deep fry techniques evolved from the stove top dutch oven method of partial submersion into the oil and having to turn the peices over for final cooking.
Here's a variation of my own fried chicken that you may appreciate.One of the great things about this breading is that is so thick and crunchy.
Using boneless skinless breasts and thighs is a matter of taste.The breading more than compensates for the lost skin.
3 boneless skinless thighs or 2 breasts of the same, whole or cut into fingers.if whole(breasts) pound with meat hammer to make even.
Pre heat deep fryer to 365 degrees.

1 egg,slightly beaten
11/4C.milk
1 teaspoon hot sauce
1 C.all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
Each of the folowing in less than 3/4 teaspoon.Use thyme as the base spice and definatly add cayenne if hot sauce used in egg wash
thyme
black pepper
garlic powder
cayenne pepper
Soak chicken in egg,milk,hot sauce bath for half an hour.
Whisk together all of the dry ingredients.Add aproxomatly 1 Tablespoon of milk and work through with your fingers to make a wet sand feel to your hands feeling.
Remove chicken from bath one peice at a time,draining excess wash and dredge by hand in flour mixture. hold on wire rack until ready to fry.
Deep fry until golen brown,or dutch oven stove top fry turning over as needed.

Answer 7

Go to a west indian shop and buy some seasonings. Most sell already seasoned flour mixed with bread crumbs. How are you frying it too, in a deep pot/chip pan?

Answer 8

I would assume that KFC uses a pancake like batter (not eggs and bread crumbs ) it will be thick and you dip it and deep fry it. It is unhealthy and you do not need to be making it, But lookk for a beer batter recipie in a fish book

Answer 9

heres the secret,,,flour dip milk dip then flour dip again into hot oil deep enough to cover the chicken cook about 10 minutes


oil must be hot

Answer 10

I dont know how much this will help but...
My boyfriend used to be a manager at KFC and he said they dip the chicken into the breading and water twice.
My mom and grandmother used egg. I guess they cut costs. :)
Good luck and good eating! :)