Dinner · 45 min · american

Copycat Crispy Fried Chicken (KFC’s style)

This is the kind of American dinner you’ll make on repeat — chicken thighs and drumsticks and low-fat buttermilk, 45 minutes, big payoff. The macros do the talking: 44g protein, 16g carbs, and 14g fat in every 370-calorie serving. No specialty equipment and nothing hard to find at a regular grocery store.

Ingredients

• 1 lb Chicken thighs and drumsticks
• 1 cup Low-fat buttermilk
• 1 Egg
• 3/4 cup All-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup Cornstarch
• 1 tbsp Paprika
• 1 tsp Garlic powder
• 1 tsp Onion powder
• 1/2 tsp Dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp Dried basil
• 1/2 tsp Dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp White pepper
• 2 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Black pepper

Steps

1. Soak the chicken in the buttermilk with a teaspoon of salt at least 30 minutes, overnight if you can — seasoned meat, not just seasoned crust.
2. Stir the flour, cornstarch, and every herb and spice into the dredge; that long list is the whole point, and the white pepper is the note people taste but can’t name.
3. Dredge, dip back in buttermilk beaten with the egg, then dredge again, squeezing the flour on so it forms shaggy flakes.
4. Rest the coated chicken 15 minutes on a rack — a dry crust air-fries crisp, a wet one goes gummy.
5. Air fry at 380°F for 22 minutes with a light oil spray, flipping at 12, until the crust is deep amber and thighs hit 175°F.
6. Rest on the rack, never a plate, 5 minutes before eating so the crust stays loud.

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