“Sigh… there goes another summer, Snoopy!”
Charlie Brown

A wonderful fried chicken recipe and a total keeper, full of juicy nicely seasoned, crunchy herby bites…while he has an option for partial oven roasting I chose the sous vide method to test my new kitchen toy and I couldn’t be happier since I don’t fry a lot but love a nice piece or two of great fried chicken.  Tyler nails it for me with all of the herbs marinade and hot fried in the cooking oil.  Yes, it is a two-step method beyond prep, but it sits in the sous vide bath for an hour undisturbed and then battered and fried to perfection.

Once you get the sous vide set up/practice setting it up and going before you need to use it the water bath is set to 163º for an hour you are set to go with your lovely chicken parts, I only made 1/2 a recipe for two of us, best to do that so you don’t gorge yourself with fried chicken and besides the leftover chicken is still crispy and I love cold fried chicken picnics or late summer pool picnics.

I used 1/2 of one chicken for the two of us and since I was at the cutting the chicken up process, I actually prepped 3 chicken, 1/2 chicken in each bag, seasoned one 1/2 of a chicken and saved the other for other recipes down the road.

Tyler’s Fried Chicken- oven version:  Ingredients: slightly adapted serves 6-8

• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 1/4 cup ground pepper
• 1/4 cup EVOO
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced rosemary, plus 4 medium sprigs
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced thyme, plus 4 sprigs
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced sage, plus 4 sprigs
• 5 minced bay leaves, preferably fresh, plus 5 whole leaves
• 3 garlic cloves, minced, plus 1 head, broken into cloves
• Two 3-pound whole chickens
• 1-quart buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce, such as Tabasco
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• Grapeseed, canola or vegetable oil, for frying
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup rice flour
• 1/4 cup garlic powder
• 1/4 cup onion powder
• Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling
• Lemon wedges, for servingPreheat the oven to 200°. and prep the chicken pieces…In a bowl, whisk 3 tablespoons of the kosher salt with 2 tablespoons of the pepper, the olive oil and the minced rosemary, thyme, sage, bay leaves, and garlic. Rub the mixture all over the chickens and set them in a slight oil roasting pan.   Easy cleanup line pan with nonstick foil.
  Roast the for about 2 hours and 30 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the inner thighs registers 150°.

  Let the chickens cool, then cut each into 10 pieces. (You should have 4 drumsticks, 4 thighs, 4 wings and 8 breast quarters.)

  In a very large bowl, whisk the buttermilk with the hot sauce and sugar. Add the chicken pieces and toss well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

  3.  In a large saucepan or your favorite fryer,  heat 2 inches of grapeseed oil to 375° with the rosemary, thyme and sage sprigs, the 5 whole bay leaves and the head of garlic. When the herbs are crispy and the garlic is golden, transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

  4.  In a large bowl, whisk the all-purpose and rice flours with the garlic and onion powders. Whisk in the remaining 3 tablespoons of kosher salt and the remaining 2 tablespoons of pepper.

  5.  Remove half of the chicken pieces from the buttermilk, letting the excess drip back into the bowl. Dredge the chicken in the seasoned flour, patting it on lightly so it adheres. Fry the chicken over high heat, turning occasionally, until golden and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of each piece registers 160°, about 6 minutes for the breasts and 8 minutes for the wings, thighs, and drumsticks. Transfer the fried chicken to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain. Let the oil return to 375° before you coat and fry the remaining chicken. Transfer the fried chicken to a platter and garnish with the fried garlic and herbs. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt and serve right away with lemon wedges.

  Alternate sous vide method:  Package and seal the chicken parts in a food-grade sturdy plastic bag/I used the food sealer, heat the sous vide water to 167º for 1 hour proceed to batter and breading stage and fry.