Paper Bag Chicken...an Ode to Pop



Frying Chicken really is an art. Years and years ago, fried my first chicken leg, ended up with a leathery bone with no batter! Takes practice to get this good, and practice you will with this recipe!

         This is a recipe that was handed down to me by my father in law, a man that was so geniune and steadfast, I always wished and thought of him as my own father. This chicken is so crispy, you'll wake the dead with it's succulent crunch. The secret is in the paper bag...a plain old brown, paper grocery bag.
here's the recipe, a definate marriage saver!
fill a large frying pan with vegetable oil about halfway and start that puppy heating over medium heat. Choose your pan wisely, you'll need one that has a tight fitting lid. While that's heating....
    Get a clean brown paper grocery bag, MUST BE PAPER, the bigger the better, throw in a few cups of flour, seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, chicken spice, a dash of cayenne pepper, and the secret ingredient, 2 to 3 generous shakes of Cinammon. that's right, Cinammon. Wet your chicken legs with water first, shake the excess, then a generous dip into your egg batter:
      2 beaten eggs, a few drips of water, salt, pepper, and a generous dollop of Honey. Yummmmmo! really roll the legs around in the egg, then drop it into your paper bag mixture. Shake, shake shake! Shake your booty.
   Not for the faint of heart,good to go in the grease right now...but...if you're going, while not go all the way and....while it's coated in the flour mix....drop and roll it again in your egg mixture again! Quick now, back to the paper bag...Shake, shake shake, Shake, shake, shake, shake your booty. A quick flick of the wrist removes excess flour, then into the hot grease....very carefully, don't want a splatter.
   To get the crispiest coating on your chicken, turn only once in the grease. No matter how tempting, no moving, no peeking, no prodding, no poking. Just drop it in the grease and LEAVE IT ALONE!  lay the chix in head to toe, head to toe, but shouldn't be touching in the grease, cover it, and leave it alone!
       You've only got one turn, make it a good one. When you see the juices start to seep from the uncooked top, running clear, flip it quick. I use tongs, so as not to pierce the chicken and lose my juice.
      Once fried, about 20 minutes total for the first batch, down to 10 min by the last batch, remove from the grease, laying your fried pieces on a clean brown paper bag on a plate, toes pointing to the middle. This helps the excess grease flow from the chicken to be absorbed by the paper bag. When cooled, I move the pieces onto another plate covered with a bar towel.



Best fried Chicken you'll ever eat!

When I do a paper bag session, I wear my sneakers. I'll be standing at the stove for a few hours, because this recipe is great to FREEZE! I promise, Stays just as crispy in the freezer 3 months from now as it does coming out of the pan! Amazing but true. So when I start, I fry 15 to 20 pounds at a time, separating into freezer bags 9 pieces in each. The key to a good freeze? Tear off a little piece of that paper bag, or a paper napking, and tuck it into the bottom of the freezer bag before the chicken. It will absorb the excess moisture, keeping your blue ribbon chicken crunchy.
And that's it, don't by chinzy, these babies go fast. When you do a batch, plan on doing several at a time. The boys in my family can easily put away 4 to 5 pieces, I've gotta hide them in the freezer or legs mysteriously start walking off on their own!
     Use a Ziploc freezer bag, head to toe, head to toe, like I said, I freeze 9 or 10 pieces in each bag, (don't forget the piece of paper bag or paper napkin to absorb moisture, very important if you're chicken is to remain as crispy on day 90 as it is on day 1) and put in the freezer.
    When ready to have your frozen legs for dinner, move to the fridge to defrost, put on a cooking sheet sprayed with non stick spray..and cook at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Yummeeee!!!
   Add a green salad and you've got a home momed dinner.
enjoy, I do@!@!!