Fried chicken is the ultimate comfort food. When done right, it’s flavorful, juicy, and (most importantly) so, so crunchy. But making it at home can be problematic. Your chicken is soggy. Your chicken is burnt. It’s overcooked. Or even worse, it’s undercooked. It’s enough to make you question why you didn’t just get in the car and head to KFC.
I’ve fried my fair share of chicken over the years. And thanks to all I’ve learned from fellow test cooks here at America’s Test Kitchen, I’ve gotten pretty darn good at it. Time after time, these five tips have separated good batches of fried chicken from truly great ones.