This is a fried-chicken compromise: shallow-frying in an inch of oil, followed by baking. Once you've done the initial frying, the oven's high heat keeps sizzling the oil on the skin, so you get a fine crust. Is it still an ungodly mess? Well, yes. But it's not as splattery as deep-frying, it uses quite a bit less fat, and the meat cooks through perfectly every time. If you really want to up the ante, season your buttermilk marinade like a brine, with salt, garlic and/or other herbs and spices. This should be started the day before serving. The recipe is adapted from Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa Family Style (Clarkson Potter 2002).
Makes 4 servings
1 chicken (about 4 pounds), cut in 10 serving pieces (2 drumsticks, 2 thighs, 2 wings, 4 breast pieces)
1 quart buttermilk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable oil or vegetable shortening
Place the chicken pieces in a large bowl and pour the buttermilk over them. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Combine the flour, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Take the chicken out of the buttermilk and dredge each piece thoroughly in the flour mixture. Pour the oil into a large heavy-bottomed stockpot to a depth of 1 inch and heat to 360 degrees on a thermometer.
Working in batches, carefully place several pieces of chicken in the oil and fry for about 3 minutes on each side until the coating is a light golden brown (it will continue to brown in the oven). Don't crowd the pieces.
Remove the chicken from the oil and place each piece on a metal baking rack set on a sheet pan. Allow the oil to return to 360 degrees before frying the next batch. When all the chicken is fried, bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is no longer pink inside. Serve hot.
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