Minny's Fried Chicken
Why I Love This Recipe
Minny’s fried chicken is always perfect—never burned, but never underdone. Fried chicken is one of the first foods Minny teaches the inexperienced Celia to make. It is the dish that brings these two women together in friendship. The recipe is fairly easy to learn—so easy that even those with no cooking background have a fair shot at mastering it.
Ingredients You'll Need
One 4-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces
2 large eggs
½ cup whole milk
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon seasoned salt
1 teaspoon seasoned pepper
24 ounces solid vegetable shortening (Crisco recommended)
Directions
1. Pat the chicken pieces dry and line a baking sheet with wax paper. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the milk. Add the chicken. In another bowl, whisk the flour with the seasoned salt and seasoned pepper. Dredge the chicken in the seasoned flour and transfer to the baking sheet.
2. In a 12-inch, cast-iron skillet, heat the vegetable shortening to 365 degrees. Add all of the chicken and fry over moderate heat, turning occasionally, until deeply golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted nearest the bone registers 170 degrees, 20 to 24 minutes. Drain the chicken on paper towels and serve right away.
