There are many things that you need in life – this perfect fried chicken recipe is one of them!

-1 whole chicken, cut into pieces

-1 1/2 tablespoons of Kosher salt

-1 tablespoon of black pepper

-1/2 tablespoon of Hungarian paprika

-1/2 tablespoon of garlic powder

-1/2 tablespoon of onion powder

-1/2 tablespoon of dried Italian herbs

-1 tablespoon of Sazon

-1/2 tablespoon of Adobo seasoning

-1 egg

-1/2 cup of buttermilk

-1 cup of cornstarch

-2 cups of all purpose flour

-vegetable oil for frying

 

1. Combine all seasonings in a bowl and mix well (salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian herbs, Sazon, and Adobo)

2. Put the chicken in a bowl and pour the seasoning liberally over the chicken and coat well.

3. Pour in the buttermilk and coat each piece of chicken well.

4. Add the egg and mix well into each piece of chicken.

5. Coat the chicken with the cornstarch and flour and shake off the excess. Place the chicken on a plate for a few minutes so that the coating can adhere. Meanwhile, preheat the oil to 360 degrees.

6. Fry the chicken until it’s golden brown. Drain on paper towels and enjoy while it’s still hot.

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89 COMMENTS

  1. I will definitely try this recipe, I am the only african American woman who cannot fry chicken and I looooooooove food. Thank you

    • I can’t fried chicken either, but i can fried fish. What’s wrong with this picture? Lol. I got the stuff today, will try it on Sunday or Monday

      • Honey. . I couldn’t fry to save my life but THIS recipe. .you can’t mess up. .This chicken recipe is AWESOME. ..you can’t mess this up

        • I’m sure I can season it right, but how long do you fry chicken? How long for each side? I need technical answers, I’m not experienced enough to just watch the meat and tell when to flip or if it’s done.

          HELP!!

          • . Soon Blake thats all you have to do is make sure the oil is hot enough. You can test the heat of the oil by taking a pinch of flour and put it in the oil if it is hot enough the flour will fry if not it will sink or 350 with thermometer. When deep fried chicken is basically done it will start floating to the top or take thermometer and test it for 166 degrees

          • when your chicken floats it usually means its done. If you’re not deep frying then when you poke the chicken and the juices come out clear its done.

      • I’m white and I can fry chicken only because I was raised in southern cuisine and my mother became sick when I was 13 and I took over cooking the meals for my 4 siblings. The first few times weren’t pretty but it just takes practice. I think you will do fine if you persevere, heck maybe even great. You will be making many memories for your children, grandchildren, friends whoever. Darius makes a whole lot of great comfort food too! I absolutely love soul food. Anyone that doesn’t is stupid IMHO lol. I married a professional chef and he didn’t know the first thing about this kind of food. I had to teach him the way!

        • Baby you could be blue/green and it wouldn’t matter. Soul cooking comes from the heart and good food made with love is all that counts?

      • It’s a Spanish seasoning by Goya get the one with con culantro y achiote ( coriander & Annatto) it’s in a orange box I put it in soups also hope this helps

      • I will not fry chicken without it…it is good. Its a Spanish Goya spice That is in Goya spice aisle. you can find it anywhere.

      • I’m from Baltimore, so I used Old Bay seasoning in place of the sazon. Came out great, but you know we would eat old bay on corn flakes! Awesome recipe though!

  2. Darius, I am going to try this tonight for my family! We are born and raised B’ham, AL so we know what good fried chicken looks like 🙂 Being a “new” stay home mom I need to top my husband’s cooking and I think this will do it. LOL! Thank you for sharing!! If you ever get a chance to visit Bahrain, I will be your first student. 🙂

  3. I’m definitely gone try this… I can taste it now lol I loveee fried chicken… Thank Youuu

  4. Darius…….You rocked on this one! Best coating I ever had! I took it to the next level, I used a copy KFC recipe for the spices.

    1/2 teaspoon Celery Salt
    1/2 teaspoon Garlic salt
    1/2 tablespoon Thyme
    1/2 tablespoon ground Mustard
    1/2 tablespoon Ground ginger.
    3 tablespoons Paprika.
    3 Tablespoons oregano
    3 tablespoons Basil
    2 tablespoons black pepper use the type that you have to grind.
    Pinch of salt

    Try that…it is the PERFECT recipe!! Way to go D!!!

  5. Darius! Thank You! Thank You! For sharing this recipe. I don’t usually bother frying chicken. But your expressions in your video just MADE my aunt and I have to try your recipe. It also seemed pretty easy. Must we say, SCRUMPTIOUS! We literally stood over the counter and ate it just like you. Look forward to trying some of your other recipes now!

  6. I don’t fry my foods but you made this look so awesome (cooking and eating) I want to try this receipe. I never thought to use corn starch for frying. You rock.

  8. This some of the best fried chicken I have every made in my life. Thanks for the recipe. It’s a keeper.

  9. My family loved this. I cooked two whole chickens, doubled the recipe. Had about 1/4 seasoning mix left. Perfect, crunchy, and tasteful!!!!! Wish I could post a picture.

  10. Thank you so much for this recipe, I’m horrible at frying chicken and this has help me out so much

  11. When I originally commented I clicked the “Notify me when new comments are added” checkbox and now
    each time a comment is added I get several emails with the same comment.
    Is there any way you ccan remove me from that service?
    Appreciate it!

  12. Just flipped the first batch… Looks amazing.. Glad to know I’m not the only sista struggling to fry chicken… Ladies we can do this!!!!

  13. I cannot fry a dang thing, but you make this seem so simple! I’m trying it & can’t wait! Thank you for posting a video of it!!

  15. I tried this last night and it was out of this world! I can throw down in the kitchen but this was absolutely the best fried chicken I’ve ever made!

  16. Ok Big D! I bought some ingredients…forgot the kosher salt….lol. Anyway..the chicken is brining in buttermilk right now….my only problem will be getting the temp of that grease hot enough. I struggle with the grease man!! Say a prayer for me….I’m going in!!

  17. Ummmm hmmmm!!! Ok i don’t know how this taste on chicken but I put this on some pork chops and my family devoured it! Sazon is one of my favorite spices to put on pork and at the moment I’m chickened out. But this works beautifully on pork chops. Will try it out on some chicken wings soon. Thanks for sharing.

  18. Darius, this is a definite keeper. I had to make my adobo season in & sazo, other than that, I love it and so does the family. Thank you!!

  19. This was the best fried chicken I’ve ever made. It was well seasoned and the skin was flaky and crispy. Because I love heat, I did add some hot sauce in with the buttermilk. I’ll have to place an order for your cookbook.

  20. This is the 1st recipe I’ve tried that came out perfect! That chicken was delicious! My husband loved it.

    • Hi, Star…Sazon is a Spanish seasoning that should be easily found in a Latin market or a Latin foods section of the grocery store. I know Goya is a common brand but you might find it under a different brand. It has a combination of seasonings like garlic, pepper, coriander, annatto seed… it is very tasty!

  22. Darius, thanks for sharing the recipe Perfect Fried Chicken… It’s on tonight’s menu 🙂 just one thing why the cornstarch? I’m a soon to be mommy and I’m super tired today so I’m going to just stick with the all purpose flour. Do you think it’s a huge difference?

    • Asia, the cornstarch actually works the same as the flour but does a better job of not falling off during frying. Makes for a major crunch factor! I use it all the time when frying meats for sweet/sour dishes!

  23. I’m cooking it as we speak. I am not a good at cooking legs. But I’m good at frying drummetts.. it smells so good. Hope it taste as good.

    • Also curious here. Is there an average time to fry on each side? My mother always used to tell me 5 minutes per side, but sometimes I still get pink centers!

  26. Thank you Darius. I will be doing this tomorrow. You are the best. I support you in everything that you do. Your cookbook is amazing. You are my role model. -Tee

  27. Gonna make this next weekend. YUM!

    My momma made a mean fried chicken but I sadly do not have the recipe. The one thing I do know that I will likely do is fry it in Bacon grease. I do remember her rendering several pounds of salt pork to get the fat for chicken night. I figure if you are gonna fry it you might as well go big or go home.

    So glad I found your website!
    ~Best, Rebecca

  28. I tried this last night, with a few alterations. I didn’t have Adobo season and I used cornmeal. It was still delicious and My husband (who really can’t stand chicken) loved it. I did have problems with it not being done all the way and had to put a few pieces back in after checking temp. Then the chicken got super dark. Need to fix this somehow. Thank you for recipe.

  29. thanks for this recipe will b trying it for my family when they come for Labor Day !!! Keep your fingers cross that it comes out immaculate!!!

  30. I am so excited! Looking for something to do today I was back on your webpage. I love fried chicken! I don’t get to eat it much because its too expensive to buy and I’m not the best cook when it comes to fried chicken! I’m so excited for this recipe! Now if the husband could just get up so we could go to the store! 🙂 Thank you so much Darius!!!!

  31. I grew up watching my mother and mother-in-law fry chicken in a cast iron skillet. For them fried chicken was a staple that didn’t require a lot of time or expensive ingredients – mainly flour, salt and pepper and it was always delicious. Over the years I’ve backed off frying food mainly because it can be messy and it’s easier to just stop by a fried chicken place and get my fill without all the hassle. However, this recipe has me yearning for the good old days. I see Darius’ fried chicken in my future real soon.

  32. What is Sazon? I don’t remember ever seeing it in my local grocery stores. I’m from S.W. Georgia so that might be why :).

  33. Aloha Darius,
    Unlike everyone else who left a message here for you. I just have to say, that I myself became hungry after watching your video just now. You made it look so easy to prep & cook, I love cooking, but frying chicken is something I often think about first, only because I just hate frying chicken, mines either comes out burnt or undercooked. So you’ve just inspired me to try your fried chicken. Oh & by the way, you make it look so darn DELICIOUS & I want some of that. In Hawaii we say Ono’Licious. . Thank you for sharing & have a blessed day or night which ever time your in at the moment. . Ahui hou a malama pono.. Nalani

  34. Hi there Darius, I just wanted to thank you for sharing this recipe. I’m known in the fam as “the cook” and get made fun of cause I can’t fry anything :(. I will be trying this recipe asap in secret and will unleash the goodness once I have your recipe down pat :))

  35. This freakin’ chicken is so delicious. Eating it right now! And thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe.

  38. Louise, make sure you use a good skillet (cast iron is best), don’t go straight from fridge to skillet — let chicken sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, and ensure the temperature is hot (360) before dropping your chicken in your oil. Make sure your temperature stays at 360 throughout the entire cooking time. You’ll want to turn your chicken with tongs as well. I hope this helps.

  40. Don’t worry ladies. I can throw down in the kitchen but I can’t fry chicken to save my life. Gotta try this.

  41. I tried this recipe this evening. OMG!!!!! It was delicious!!!! So flavorful and tasty!!!!! I will definitely be using this recipe again.

  42. I just tried your recipe last night and it was delicious! I will definitely be using it every time I make chicken! It truly was perfect!

  43. Will be sticking to my own fried chicken recipe. I fry all thr time and it comes out excellent. I stuck to the recipe to a tee. This was… weird and disappointing. The breading was waxy and stale seeming with just corn starch and flour (I usually use a panko, flour, bread crumbs + seasoning mix after battering in flour and panko+seasoning slurry). Zero crunch. It reminded me of cafeteria fried chicken. The seasonings don’t really blend very well. I figured that might happen when adding random Hispanic spices to traditional fried chicken spices. I had to fry them twice to get a pleasing color, they stayed white otherwise. The flavoring was too peppery. I like spicy a LOT LOT but well articulated flavor spice. This tasted like intense black pepper between the added black pepper and the sazon. I wanted this to be awesome so bad and I was super pumped and bought a bunch of crap to do it. I’m embarrassed too because I had to bring it to a friend’s house for dinner and swore I’d be making something great and better than my own. Not the case.

  44. Mr. Darius,
    This is my first time using your recipe for fried chicken and I have to say I absolutely love it! I made a few adjustments because I didn’t have certain ingredients. For example, I didn’t have buttermilk so I used I cup of milk and a tbsp of vinegar and I let it sit for several minutes. I’m very familiar with Spanish seasonings because my children are mixed but I’m African American myself. I used wings instead of a whole chicken only because that’s my preference. I didn’t have cornstarch because I ate it all lol don’t ask… so I used flour, Italian bread crumbs and Japanese bread crumbs. I just tasted a drum stick and started doing the fat kid dance lol. Thank you for this and I also used your 6 cheese mac and cheese recipe and me and everyone loved it! Many blessings to you indeed!

  46. Tried this recipe..it was my first ever attempt at making fried chicken. Absolutely amazing..my kids loved it,i loved it. Even my mother inlaw loved it. Thats saying alot! Haha. Definitely saving this recipe for the future

  47. This chicken is the best! My daughters (28 years old) absolutely loved as did I. I found all the ingredients at HEB. I used only half the pepper amount which worked out perfectly for us and it happened I already had a package of 11 drumsticks. The chicken was tasty to the bone! Thank you.

  48. Sure wish you had a printer friendly version. This sounds wonderful and it is a pain to have to make a new Word document to be able to print it!

  49. Wow—I tried this recipe and this is the BEST chicken I have ever made! Was it the recipe or my cast iron skillet—or both together??? I think it was both!! Truly delicious!! Thanks for your video and your combination of spices!!

  50. Hey there D:
    How are you? Let me tell you about your fried chicken recipe, I just tried it for the first time and I can’t believe how goooood it tastes. Wow. The next recipe for me to try will be the mac and cheese recipe.
    Thank you.

  52. Love this recipe. My suggestions, cut the salt 1/2tbsp, also cut Italian seasoning in half. I used cayenne instead of adobo, cause that’s what I had. Many comments mentioned chicken too dark. Fry it at 350* for 15 minutes. Don’t overstuff the fryer to maintain the temp which gives you the crunch. I brought the chicken and buttermilk and eggs almost to room temp as well. It frys up much better. It was juicy inside, perfectly cooked and crispy. Loved it. Excellent recipe!

  53. Thank you so much for this recipe. It was truly delicious. My 4 year son never cleans the bone of his chicken but he did tonight. Although I did have to substitute the Adobo and Sazon for seasoning salt. I live in Korea and those seasonings are hard to come by.

  54. Thank you Darius! The chicken came out amazing. I followed your direction exactly. I used chicken drumsticks. It was a huge hit. My family loved it. I have never tried frying whole pieces of chicken before and it was so easy. I can’t wait to try your other recipes. Thanks again!

  55. I made this tonight and it was by far, the best fried chicken I’ve tasted! The family loved it, so that’s a win for me. I added 1/2 tbsp of Cajun seasoning and replaced the Hungarian Paprika for regular Paprika.

  56. I must confess Mr. DARIUS ,that was the best fried chicken I saw on Facebook. I’m a diabetic, and gave up fried foods . But fried chicken is my favorite food and my weakness . Go ahead call me weak I have to try this recipe. I can cook some good fried catfish, was raised up eating catfish,I can fry some ok fried chicken sometimes. I gotta be in the mood . I want to thank you for sharing your recipes. Have a great day.

  57. I’m not sure if it’s been pointed out before, but the Cajun seasoning in the video was not metioned in the written recipe

    • I know my reply is late but you are correct. I notifed that too. I was advised to use 1 teaspoon so I did. And it worked out very well

  58. I appreciate this recipe. I made it this morning making chicken thighs and a few chicken fingers. Prior to this recipe and method, making fried chicken was the bane of my existence. I am an above average cook, but couldnt ever get fried chicken to come out the way I wanted it to. This came out almost perfect, the crust came out a bit darker than I would prefer, but I was using a new electric skillet and was not familiar with the temp settings. The flavor was great. Thanks for sharing.

  59. Okay I wanna try this recipe but I have a couple questions. Which brand of saizon did you use? On your YouTube channel, you have Cajun seasoning as an ingredient but it’s not listed above. Do I use it? Thanks for your reply.

  60. Not sure what happened but half my coating fell off as soon as I touched it..anyone else experience this????…Good flavor though.

  61. Awesome chicken recipe! Crispy breading that sticks beautifully to the chicken, seasoned perfectly with just a kick off spiciness.

    All the how to fry type questions.. I used a cast iron chicken fyer.. Deep, heavy and heats evenly.. Oil needs to be hot! Fry in small batches not touching and Place cooked pieces on a cooking rack placed on a sheet pan in a hot oven.. If youre concerned they aren’t done, increase oven time.. You can also fry the largest (breasts) first so that have more oven time

  63. Okay so I made this fried chicken awhile back and forgot to post my results. The seasonings are on point imo. I use a tablespoon of it for fried chicken recipes calling for chicken seasoning so I don’t have to buy store-bought chicken seasoning. It ups the flavor level. In fact, I will be using it later to fry some drumsticks and maybe some wingettes.

    I use the saizon that’s NOT the seasoning salt. On the front there’s a pot surrounded by veggies. You had it to just about anything to make your food taste better even beans.

    As for the Cajun seasoning, I was advised to use one teaspoon and it worked out great. So I will stick with that amount for now. I also used a homemade cajun mix I found online and it worked out great as well

    Tbh I really don’t like using buttermilk when frying chicken. It seems like when I do my chicken fries up darker than when I don’t use it. So I either use only water or egg and water. If using egg/water, you can add a couple tablespoons of hot sauce if you want. Whichever you choose, your chicken should be a very nice golden brown as long as you fry at the right temperature

    Speaking of which, I feel as though frying chicken at 360° when using buttermilk is too high. I don’t know how ppl manage to do that. I always fry chicken at 350° and whenever I used buttermilk, the chicken would fry to fast and become kinda dark in a matter of minutes. I would always have to lower the heat and in some cases remove the chicken out of the oil and allow the oil to cool down. That was such an inconvenience

    So I don’t use buttermilk anymore. What I would suggest is regular milk powder or buttermilk powder. They may be better alternatives. I plan on trying both in the near future.

    Peace. HTH Someone

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