Chicken Hot Rods

Chicken Hot Rods at KFC are smaller bite size portions of chicken on a stick and then battered and fried. It has that typical KFC flavours its just that eating them off the rods makes them exciting and a great finger food. I have tried to duplicate the actual KFC recipe before a few times. I am pleasantly surprised with the outcome this time, good enough to feature on this blog. Before moving to the recipe I would like to state I haven’t added all the “secret” herbs and spices yet the end result was almost there! Well, almost 80%. Now I would think that’s quite an achievement since there are no commercial equipment used neither is this is a replica of the exact recipe. I tried two different ways to frying, one was dipping in buttermilk and the other without. The buttermilk dipped chicken yielded better crispier results than the un-dipped ones.  One of the best thing about the recipe was “curing” the chicken in brine and then tossing it in flour before they hit the fryer resulted in juicier, flavor filled chicken.

Recipe

Chicken :

Chicken thigh meat : 500 gms, cut into 2 inch strips about 1.5 cm thickness

Water : 750 ml

Salt 1.5 tsp

Spices 

• Onion powder : 1 tsp (I used 3/4 tsp onion salt)
• Paprika : 1 tsp
• Pepper: 1/2 tsp, ground
• Herbs : 1 tsp (I used Pizza topper with a mix of thyme, oregano, marjoram)
• Parsley : 1/2 tsp dried or 1 tsp fresh finely chopped (I used fresh)

 

Mix all the above spices in water. Dunk the chicken in them and let it sit covered in the fridge overnight or for a minimum of 4 hours.

For the batter:

All pupose flour : 3/4 Cup

Cornflour : 1/4 cup+ 1 tbsp

Eggs : 2, beaten in a shallow bowl wide enough to drench the marinated chicken

Butter milk : 1/4 cup – I used thick greek yoghurt with a couple of tbsp milk

Spices

• Onion powder : 1 tsp (I used 3/4 tsp onion salt)
• Paprika : 1.5 tsp
• White Pepper: 1/2 tsp, ground 
• Herbs : 3/4 tsp (I used Pizza topper with a mix of thyme, oregano, marjoram)
• Parsley : 1/2 tsp dried or 1 tsp fresh finely chopped (I used fresh)
• Garlic powder : 3/4 tsp

Wooden skewers about 6-7 about 6 inches long

Oil : Neutral oil like canola for deep frying

Take 3 Shallow dishes

1. Beat the eggs in the first dish
2. Beat the yogurt with milk in the second dish
3. Mix the spices with the flours in the third Dish

Take the chicken out of the brine solution and thread them lengthwise. Threading them lengthwise gives more surface area for the chicken to get cooked quickly. 

Next Drench in Eggs

Next in the buttermilk

Finally dredge in flour. Make sure you have the chicken well coated in flour. Shake off the excess

Deep fry in oil. Cook for 12-14 minutes till it turns golden brown on low-medium heat. Drain on paper towel and serve with Mayo or garlic aioli.

 

Notes :

The oil needs to be hot not smoking hot. Test a bit of the egg flour mix, if it pops to the surface its good enough for frying

Theres no picture of the buttermilk, I have forgotten to take a snapshot. But please be assured it tasted much crispier and better with buttermilk