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Enhancing your fried chicken at home with vodka guarantees an additional crispy texture, but this unusual component helps keep the meat succulent within.
Without caution, the intense heat from frying can swiftly transform chicken from juicy and tender to a desiccated letdown. However, there is one underestimated item, possibly even in your pantry, that can elevate your chicken’s quality.
Elevating Fried Chicken with Cream of Chicken Soup
The Magic of Cream of Chicken Soup
Incorporating cream of chicken soup aids in cooking your meat tenderly while providing the ideal crispy batter layer. It usually comprises a blend of chicken stock, flour, cream, chicken fat, and vegetable oil, all of which are beneficial for achieving the most delicious dish. This ingredient serves three primary purposes for your homemade meal:
- Enhances Taste: It imparts a generous amount of flavor.
- Improves Adhesion: It assists in making the dredge adhere to the meat before frying.
- Retains Moisture: A dense layer of the soup helps preserve moisture that could otherwise escape during the frying process.
The Question of Affordability and Ease
Moreover, adding cream of chicken soup to your fried chicken is a budget-friendly and simple method to keep all those savory juices in place, requiring minimal extra effort.
Utilizing Canned Soup for Optimal Results
The secret to flawless fried chicken at home lies in a well-seasoned dredge, designed to cling to the meat.
This is where canned cream of chicken soup comes into play.
Instead of a conventional egg wash, combine the egg with the soup in a bowl, along with a pinch of salt.
Concurrently, mix your cornstarch and flour with your selected seasoning before coating the chicken in the egg mixture as usual.
Next, dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, noticing the blend beginning to adhere to the soup.
For superior results, allow the soup and egg mixture to marinate until the exterior looks slightly doughy, as this is crucial for an even crispier exterior.
Frying the Chicken
Once you have a pan filled with boiling hot oil, add the chicken for approximately 10 minutes before removing it to drain.
Allow some time for the fried chicken to cool before savoring what should now be a delectably crispy batter with a tender interior.
Vodka for Extra Crispiness
Another tip for achieving the best fried chicken of your life involves adding vodka to the blend.
Numerous cultures have been employing spirits or beer for years to impart an extra crunch to the outer batter, and science provides an explanation of how it functions.
Volatile liquids like vodka evaporate much more quickly than water when exposed to high temperatures, such as those in the frying pan.
This expedited dehydration of the batter results in a perfectly crispy texture for that added crunch.