Name: Buttermilk fried chicken
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Southern & soul
Ingredients: 3.5 lb Chicken pieces; 32 oz Buttermilk; 3 cups All-purpose flour; 0.5 cups Cornstarch; 2 tbsp Paprika; 1 tbsp Garlic powder; 1 tsp Cayenne pepper; 64 oz Vegetable oil; 2 tbsp Salt; 1 tbsp Black pepper

Buttermilk fried chicken

The one everybody asks for. A long soak in buttermilk does most of the work.

How many people are eating

Written for 4. Everything below is scaled to 4.

What goes on the list — untick anything you have

3.5 lb Chicken pieces(bone-in thighs and drumsticks fry best)
32 oz Buttermilk
3 cups All-purpose flour
0.5 cups Cornstarch(this is what keeps it crisp)
2 tbsp Paprika· most people have this
1 tbsp Garlic powder· most people have this
1 tsp Cayenne pepper· most people have this
64 oz Vegetable oil(for frying — peanut oil if they have it)
2 tbsp Salt· most people have this
1 tbsp Black pepper· most people have this

It lands in the shopping form, where you can edit anything, add to it, and say what you think each thing costs. Nothing is ordered until you send it.

How to cook it · about 45 minutes

Put the chicken in the buttermilk with a tablespoon of salt. Cover and leave in the fridge at least four hours, overnight if you can.
Mix the flour, cornstarch, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne, and the rest of the salt and pepper in a wide bowl.
Pour about two inches of oil into a heavy pot and heat it to 325°F. Without a thermometer: a pinch of flour should sizzle steadily, not violently.
Lift a piece out of the buttermilk, let the excess run off for a second, then press it firmly into the flour on all sides. Press hard — that is what makes the craggy crust.
Fry three or four pieces at a time so the oil stays hot. Thighs and drumsticks take 12–14 minutes, turning once.
It is done at 165°F in the thickest part. Rest on a wire rack, never on paper towel, or the underside goes soft.

Amounts are on the list above — they change with the number of people; the steps do not.