I had very limited experience with burgers. Sure, I had worked at Maccas, but slapping some processed morsel between some cardboard hardly counts.
The Beginning
In March 2016, I had a blank sketchbook that I took out to a park in Evandale without phone reception, and I sat and thought about what my business was going to be. Would you believe it was pasta? I had a menu, a layout, the equipment, mock rosters, costings, anything I could think of... except a name.
After I purchased the food van that would become Food for Dudes (and Dudettes), I sat down on High street for a day polishing things up. I realised that my love wasn't in pasta, but was in the hearty and unapologetic dude food. Believe it or not, the next 6 weeks would fly by with no actual documented plan. From that moment onwards, I pretty much winged it, until what we call the Great Depression of April 2018 - where that strategy came back to bite me in the butt (a story for another day).
The Quest for Perfect Fried Chicken
I had a seared chicken burger on the original menu. The chipotle chicken burger... There was just one thing wrong with it. The burger, while tasty, couldn't hold a candle to the Colonel's creation. So I went on another quest (winging it) with buttermilk fried chicken. I was reckless. I threw a bunch of herbs, spices, and salt into some flour, and our fried chicken was born. It was an instant hit! It was addictive!
Eventually, I wrote down our recipe, and I can share it with you today.
P.S. Let me know if this works in an air fryer.
"I was reckless. I threw a bunch of herbs, spices, and salt into some flour, and our fried chicken was born. It was an instant hit! It was addictive!"
Buttermilk
Ingredients:
- 250ml White Vinegar
- 1L Full Cream Milk
Method:
- Add vinegar to suitable sized container.
- Add milk to vinegar.
- Mix together.
Spice Flour Mix
Ingredients:
- 13.5g Ground Cumin
- 13.5g Smoked Paprika
- 13.5g Garlic Powder
- 6.75g Ground Black Pepper
- 6.75g Mixed Herbs
- 40g Salt
- 1kg Self Raising Flour
Method:
- Weigh out everything except flour into a mixing bowl.
- Add flour to mixing bowl.
- Mix thoroughly.
Cooking
Simply coat your chicken with the spice flour mix, dip into buttermilk and coat with flour again.
Deep fry in your preferred oil at approx. 165c until golden brown and cooked throughout.
Place cooked chicken on paper towel to absorb excess oil.
Enjoy!
