Twice Cooked Chicken Recipes

TWICE-FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Cure chicken: In a large bowl, add salt and mustard and onion powders, and combine until well blended. Add the chicken pieces and get in there with your hands to coat each piece well. Put the coated pieces of chicken on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, keeping the skin intact; lightly cover with parchment paper or plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to overnight.
• Bring the cured chicken to room temperature. (You don't want to fry ice-cold chicken, because it won't cook all the way through, plus it will chill the frying oil.) Meanwhile, make the batter: In a large bowl, add the cornstarch, flour, and salt. Slowly pour in the cold water, whisking continuously, until the mixture is smooth and the consistency of thin pancake batter. Add more water as needed to thin the batter.
• Heat oil: Clip a candy or deep fry thermometer onto a large, heavy pot. Add enough canola oil to fully submerge the chicken pieces-about halfway up the side of the pot. (Oil expands as it heats, so don't overfill the pot.) Heat the oil over low heat until it reaches 300 degrees F. (It's fine if the oil temperature goes up to 350 degrees F, because it will drop once the chicken goes in.) Coat chicken: When the oil is hot, add all the chicken into the batter and fully coat each piece.
• First fry: Starting with the dark meat, use tongs to pick up each piece and allow the excess batter to drip off. Gently swirl the tip of the chicken in the oil to set the crust; this will prevent the chicken from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Then ease the rest of the piece into the oil. Repeat with all the chicken pieces. Fry for 10 minutes.Use a slotted spoon or spider strainer to make sure the chicken pieces don't stick together or to the bottom of the pot. If they do stick, gently separate them with the spoon; try not to tear the delicate crust!
• After 10 minutes, use the slotted spoon to transfer the chicken pieces to drain on a wire rack or paper towels on a baking sheet. The chicken will not be fully cooked-there's a second fry. Let the chicken rest, 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, reheat the oil to 350 degrees F. (Note: The chicken can be made to this point up to 1 day ahead and refrigerated; bring it back to room temperature before the second fry.) Second fry: When the oil is hot, fry the chicken pieces again, this time for 4 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.
• Use the slotted spoon to transfer the chicken pieces to a clean wire rack set over a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Let cool for 5-10 minutes, then serve. (Note: Frying oil can be reused several times for frying chicken. Cool the oil completely, then pour through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean jar. Cover and store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.)

BONNIE'S TWICE COOKED OVEN FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Soak chicken in cold salted water for an hour.
• Remove and pat dry.
• Combine all ingredients in a bowl or bag.
• Toss in chicken and coat well.
• Put about an inch of oil in heavy pan .
• fry chicken for about 10 minutes on each side to brown.
• Place on a foil lined baking sheet.
• Bake at 350 F approximatly 25 minutes or until juices run clear.

TWICE COOKED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Rub chicken all over with salt. Rinse. Place in pot over a pot filled with water.
• Add the jujubes.
• Steam 3 hours, replenishing water often.
• Remove skin. Flake meat.
• Mix with jujubes, any acumulated juices and soy sauce in bowls.
• YUM!

TWICE-COOKED MOCK TANDOORI CHICKEN

Steps:

• Heat oven to 300 degrees. Put chicken in a deep roasting pan.
• Put oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until they soften and begin to color, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and ginger; cook and stir 2 minutes more. Stir in the ground spices and cook until just fragrant, no more than a minute. Stir in the yogurt, then spread mixture over chicken. Cover and put in oven; bake until chicken is just cooked through, about 1 1/2 hours. (You can prepare chicken up to a day ahead; if you are not going to grill or broil immediately, put whole pan in refrigerator after it cools down a bit.)
• Light a charcoal or gas grill or heat broiler; rack should be about 4 inches away from heat source. Remove chicken from yogurt sauce, scraping away any excess.
• Grill or broil over direct heat, turning once or twice, until skin is crisp and charred and meat dries out a bit, about 15 minutes total. Serve hot or at room temperature.