Having read and tried my hand at many fried chicken recipes, this one stood out by having the best flavour, crunch and when mated with this particular coleslaw and the white rolls on my previous post – I have to say, what an absolute delight!

It’s the kind of meal you talk about after, as you would walking out of a movie that you loved. Please try this one and let me know what you think. What a delight.

The chicken recipe is by ‘Gourmet Traveller’ magazine but I have adapted slightly

Chicken Ingredients Serves 3, or 2 very hungry people – You will need to begin the night before

• 70g fine sea salt
• 4 chicken thighs and 4 drumsticks, skinless (or just do yourself) I used chicken on the bone but you can use thigh fillets if you wish
• 500 ml buttermilk
• 300 ml milk
• 4 egg whites
• 400g plain flour
• 50g rice flour
• 4tsp onion powder
• 4tsp sweet paprika
• 2 tsp finely ground white pepper
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp finely ground thyme
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1tsp cayenne pepper
• Vegetable or groundnut oil for deep frying

First, bring the salt and 2 litres of water to a simmer over a high heat. Stir to dissolve the salt and let cool completely. Add the chicken and the brine to a large bowl and refrigerate overnight.

In the meantime – about 3 hours before you want to eat, start making the rolls (if using) and get the coleslaw prepped to marinade in the fridge.

For the coleslaw – serves 3

• 80ml good quality mayonnaise
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 15g soft light brown sugar
• 1 ½ tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp buttermilk
• 2 tsp celery seeds
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• ½ tsp cayenne
• ¼ head of shredded green cabbage
• ¼ head shredded red cabbage
• 1 carrot cut into thin batons or shredded
• ½ grated yellow onion
• Handful of fresh chopped parsley

In a medium sized bowl combine the mayonnaise, mustard. Sugar, vinegar, buttermilk, celery seeds, salt, pepper, cayenne and whisk together to dissolve the sugar.

In a large bowl combine the remaining ingredients and toss with the dressing until well coated. (only use as much as you like, I add everything). Adjust seasoning to taste and refrigerate until the chicken is cooked.

For the chicken – method continued

So hopefully now you have your sides – coleslaw and rolls

Bring a large pan of water to the boil, drain chicken and add to the boiling water for 8-10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Heat oil in a med-lge saucepan to 180°C and combine the buttermilk and milk in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the 4 egg whites to soft peaks and fold through the milk mixture until just mixed in. Take care to keep mixture as light as possible.

Combine the flours and spices (everything else) into a separate bowl and dip the chicken in the fluffy milk mixture, followed by the flour mixture. Repeat this process for all the chicken pieces so they are all double coated.

Deep fry the chicken in batches for about 5-7 minutes and drain on absorbent paper.

Now assemble your rolls with coleslaw as you wish – enjoy!