Today we are going to take a look at making Spanish-style fried chicken strips. These are crunchy and spicy with bold flavours that are perfect served with a side mayo based dipping sauce and lemon wedges.
Ingredients:
3 lb. skinless chicken breast or thigh cut into strips
4 garlic cloves, smashed
4 cups buttermilk
4 tablespoons paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons red chili pepper flakes
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
To start mix together the buttermilk, garlic cloves, 3 tablespoons of the paprika, the cumin, coriander, red chili pepper flakes, salt and pepper in a large bowl.
Add the chicken making sure that all the pieces are fully submerged in the buttermilk marinade. Cover and let sit in the fridge for 4-12 hours.
When ready to cook, mix together the flour, cayenne pepper and last tablespoon of paprika in a new bowl.
Remove the chicken pieces from the buttermilk marinade and roll in the flour mix until evenly battered. Discard the remaining buttermilk marinade.
In a large saucepan heat 2 inches of vegetable oil until it reaches cooking temperature (around 350 degrees if you have a deep frying thermometer). In batches add the battered chicken pieces and fry until golden brown and done through, turning once halfway. This should generally take 3-5 minutes total.
When done, plate on a large platter and dust with a little more salt to taste. These are great just as they are with some lemon wedges on the side, but they are also really terrific with dipping sauces. One excellent one that is easy to make is to mix a cup of mayonnaise with a tablespoon or two (or three!) of your favourite hot sauce. I like to use the El Yucateco Salsa Picante de Chile Habanero.
Goes perfectly with white wine or beer. It is also an excellent party dish.
Enjoy.
This recipe was originally published on The Left Chapter blog in December, 2017.