"notbob" > wrote:
> Now we're getting to the real nitty gritty. But! ...here's what I run
> across on the web:
>
> "Keep your oil very hot. To make sure that your chicken doesn't get
> greasy, you want the oil hot enough (375 degrees Fahrenheit) that the
> water in the chicken stays above the boiling point during frying. The
> force of the steam leaving the chicken keeps the oil from being
> absorbed. The hot oil also makes the outside wonderfully crispy."
>
> http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/Dumm...bcat-FOOD.html
>
> This is what I always thought. Hot != greasy. But, then the very
> same page later states:
>
> "Brown the chicken quickly to seal in the juices. After the initial
> browning, reduce the heat to allow the chicken to cook through without
> drying."

I took a look at that dummies article and there are those contradictions. I
think what the overall jist of it is that the oil has to be "hot" during
the initial browning stage, and can be lowered quite a bit during the longer
cooking period where the interior is brought up to a safe and "cooked"
temperature. Once the crust is crisp and brown, I think it is fairly
tolerant of a lower temperature, as long as it is still well above the
boiling point of water. 275 to 325 is still well above boiling. Notice the
dummies article says nothing about oil temperature for the second part of
cooking where all the chicken is returned to the pan. It says turn heat to
low or medium low and cook slowly and gently.

To me, 375 still seems a bit high for an initial temperature, but I know how
hard it is to control the temperature even over a gas flame. I probably try
for 350 to 360, but overshoot often enough and end up at 375 or more. The
oil temperature with nothing in the pan climbs very fast, and I'm not going
to turn the heat off and wait until it gets back down. I just monitor how
fast the browning is occurring and lower the flame a bit if it seems to be
going too fast.

Then there's the whole issue of using a cover. The advice varies across the
board. I cover during the first half of cooking on the first side, and then
cook uncovered for the remainder. With my crust recipe (which produces a
fairly thick crust, but it is not a batter crust), it ends up very crispy.
The thing I like about covering during the first part of cooking is that is
where the bubbling oil causes the most mess. The bubbling is very much
subdued during the later portions of the cooking time. Though I do use a
cover, it is still vented... my chicken fryer has two spouts, and the cover
also covers these spouts totally enclosing it if aligned. But I turn the
cover slightly so the spouts are uncovered and the steam can escape. Most of
the oil spatter is contained but the steam can get out.

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