Fried chicken is the great dish of the American South, with roots in both Scottish frying traditions and the cooking of enslaved West Africans, whose seasoning and skill shaped Southern kitchens. It became the food of Sunday dinners, church suppers and picnics, the dish a family cook was judged by. Today it is eaten from Texas to the Carolinas and far beyond, and every household believes its own method is the correct one.

Ours follows the most widely loved pattern: an overnight bath in salted buttermilk, which seasons and tenderizes the meat, then a dredge in spiced flour with a few spoonfuls of buttermilk rubbed in to make the crust rough and crunchy. Fry it in a heavy pot, keep the oil steady and take its temperature, and you will have something worth gathering around a screen for. It is just as good cold the next day, which some would argue is the point.

The buttermilk brine

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 lb (1.6 kg) bone in, skin on chicken pieces
• 2 cups (480 ml) buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) hot sauce
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

The seasoned flour

Ingredients

• 2 cups (250 g) all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (60 g) cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 3 tablespoons (45 ml) buttermilk from the brine

Dredging and frying

Ingredients

• 6 to 8 cups (1.4 to 1.9 liters) canola or vegetable oil, or melted vegetable shortening

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