Serves 4

1 hour + overnight dry brining.

A LITTLE EFFORT

Double dredge = extra crisp coating.

Legendary chef Thomas Keller started the trend for double and triple dredging his fried chicken and who are we to argue? Try dry-brining overnight too for extra juicy meat.

Whole chicken thighs and drumsticks 1kg, skin trimmed

Groundnut oil for deep-frying

THE DRY BRINE

Lemon 1, zested

Bay leaves 4, sliced

Flat-leaf parsley a small bunch, chopped

Thyme a few sprigs, chopped

Garlic cloves 4, bruised

Black peppercorns 1 tbsp

Rock salt 50g

THE COATING MIX

Plain flour 250g

Garlic powder 2 tsp (try Keya available at gourmet stores)

Paprika 2 tsp (try Keya available at gourmet stores)

Allspice powder 1/2 tsp

Cayenne powder 1 tsp (try Keya available at gourmet stores)

Black pepper 1/2 tsp, ground

Thyme 1/2 tsp, chopped

Buttermilk 285ml.

• Mix all the dry brine ingredients in a bowl. Put the chicken pieces in a large freezer bag and add the brine mix. Toss to coat then put on the bottom shelf of the fridge and leave overnight.
• The next day, brush all the salt mix from the chicken and rinse under cold water. Pat dry with kitchen paper. Leave uncovered at room temperature for 1 hour to dry out and reach room temperature.
• Heat the oven to 190°C. Put a metal rack over a baking tray or shallow roasting tin. Mix all the dry coating ingredients in a large bowl. Put 1/3 of the coating mix in a shallow bowl. Pour the buttermilk into a second shallow bowl and put the rest of the mix in a third bowl. Line a large tray or platter with baking paper.
• Just before frying, dip the chicken pieces into the first bowl of flour coating, turning to coat and patting off the excess; dip them into the buttermilk, allowing the excess to run back into the bowl; then dip them into the second bowl of flour coating. Transfer to the baking paper-lined tray.
• When all the chicken is coated, heat 2cm oil in a deep non-stick frying pan until a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds. Add the chicken in batches of 3-4 pieces and carefully fry on all sides until light golden (don’t let them get too dark as you are going to cook them further in the oven). Carefully transfer each piece to the roasting rack and tray. When all the pieces have had their initial frying, put in the oven on a low shelf for 15 minutes to finish cooking. Serve hot.
• PER SERVING 583 kcals, protein 43.5g, carbs 50g, fat 23.1g, sat fat 6.3g, fibre 2.8g, salt 2.7g.