‘American Fried Chicken is always delicious, but I have a bit of a problem with deep frying. Firstly, it adds a lot of extra calories from the large amount of oil that gets absorbed into the breading. And secondly, I don't want to be left with a lot of oil that splashes and has to be discarded afterwards.
The airfryer has become very popular, but inspired by some YouTube videos comparing an airfryer to a convection oven, I realised that you can do the same thing in a convection oven, just place the food on a rack with a tray underneath. And most people have that option in their regular oven.
Get the tenderest, juiciest chicken meat with lots of flavour and a hint of chilli in the background - or a chilli kick if you prefer.
American fried chicken in a convection oven - with potato wedges
Make American Fried Chicken without the deep fryer and airfryer.Well, actually, you can use the exact same recipe in both the deep fryer and air fryer. But here's the method if you don't have or don't want to use one of the two.Get the tenderest, juiciest chicken meat with lots of flavour and a hint of chilli in the background - or a chilli kick if you prefer.You can either cut a whole chicken into 8 pieces (you'll have the carcass for stock), or do what I do and use the upper and lower thighs. They give a juicy result and have the advantage that they need the same cooking time. Chicken breasts can easily become dry if cooked as long as thighs.Marinate the chicken in buttermilk. It's best if it's overnight, but if you can't, you can ‘get away with’ soaking the chicken a few hours in advance. They can last up to 48 hours, so if you can't cook on the day you had planned, they'll keep until the next day (according to the US Food and Drug Administration). The slight acidity of the buttermilk makes the meat much more tender and juicy and gives it a great texture. If you can't get your hands on buttermilk, you can easily use regular milk with ½ tsp lemon juice or vinegar per decilitre.The side dishes are of course optional, but I like spicy potato wedges and maybe a green salad with Steven's Secret DressingNB! If you have two oven racks so you don't cook chicken and potatoes in layers, both will be crispier!
Equipment
- 1-2 rack(s) over baking tray or plate(possibly one for chicken and another for potatoes)
- 1 Oil spray(you can buy an oil/butter spray or use an atomiser)
- 1 convection oven
Ingredients
Seasoning and marinating (you can use whatever seasoning you prefer - this is a suggestion)
All measurements are (of course) levelled
- 1 1500-1700 grams whole chicken OR
- 4 whole chicken legs (upper and lower thighs)
- 2 tbsp paprika
- possibly 2 tsp smoked paprika (if you have)
- 1 tsp turmeric
- ½-2 tsp chilli powder or cayenne pepper Do you want a touch or a kick? Vary the amount accordingly
- 1 tbsp onion powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp pepper
- 1 tbsp salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp brown sugar or brown cane sugar
- 4 dl buttermilk
Breading and frying
- 150 g wheat flour
- 75 g cornstarch
- Oil for spraying
Potato wedges (use your favourite spices - this is my suggestion)
- 1½ kg potatoes
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- Salt for boiling
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 tsp chilli flakes
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1-2 tsp Dried thyme or Herbes de Provence
Method
Seasoning and marinating
- Cut the chicken into 8 roughly equal parts or halve the chicken legs into upper and lower thighs
- Mix all the spices + baking powder and sugar
- Pour a couple of heaped teaspoons of the mixture over the chicken pieces and spread it out. Let it sit for about 5 minutes so that it sticks a bit. Set the rest of the spice mixture aside for the next day
- Pour the buttermilk into a bowl of a suitable size and lower the chicken pieces into it. Ideally, they should be covered in buttermilk. Place in the fridge (covered)
Next day - or after a few hours: Potato wedges (clean and cook one hour or longer before the rest of the preparation)
- Wash the potatoes and check them for spots and stains
- Cut them into relatively large wedges
- Boil in lightly salted water with vinegar for 5 minutes. Pour into a sieve or colander and leave to drain and cool, preferably for an hour or longer
- Pour the oil and spices into a plastic bag, I use an 8 litre bag
- Put the potatoes in the bag and distribute the oil and spices evenly. It's surprisingly easy.
- EITHER
- Spread the potatoes in the bottom of the baking tray over which you want to place the chicken rack. This will keep them relatively soft
- OR
- Place them on a wire rack that you can place a drip tray underneath. This will make them crispier
Preparation of chicken
- Remove the chicken pieces from the buttermilk and let them drip off if necessary.Buttermilk is discarded due to the risk of salmonella. If you want to avoid food waste, you can freeze it and use it again next time.
- Mix wheat flour, cornflour and the rest of the spice mix from the day before
- Place the chicken pieces, one at a time, into the breading, making sure they are coated all over. Shake them lightly before placing them gently (to avoid damaging the breading) on the rack you want to cook them on
- Spray the chicken pieces with a thin layer of oil or butter on the visible part. Try to hit them all over.
- Place the potatoes and chickens in an oven preheated to 190°, fan on
- Cooks in 45 minutes
- Enjoy!
English (UK) 
Dansk
1 Comment
This sounds like a great recipe for American Fried Chicken without the use of a deep fryer or air fryer. I can understand your concerns about the extra calories and hassle of deep frying. It's exciting to hear that you can achieve the same result by using a convection oven and placing the food on a wire rack with a tray underneath. This makes it much more accessible to most people, as most people have a regular oven at home.
I really like the idea of getting the tenderest, juiciest chicken meat with lots of flavour and a hint of chilli. The acidity of buttermilk sounds like a great way to make the meat tender and juicy, and it's nice to know that you can also use regular milk as a substitute if you don't have buttermilk on hand.
The side dish of spicy potato wedges and a green salad also sounds delicious. I like that you mention that if you have two oven racks, you can avoid cooking the chicken and potatoes in layers, which will make both crispier. These are great tips!
I will definitely try this recipe for American Fried Chicken in my convection oven. It sounds like a healthier and easier way to prepare this delicious dish. Thanks for sharing the recipe with us!
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