Fried Chicken a' la Simply Marvelous

Tonight, it was fried chicken, it was supposed to be BBQ chicken, but, I just didn't feel like firing up the kettle. Well, there is also the issue that I forgot to get some lump charcoal, heh heh, who needs a shopping list.  Anyway, I had a couple of tablespoons of Simply Marvelous Sweet and Spicy rub, from my friend Steph, who operates a catering company in Ventura, California.  I took the 2 tbs. of  rub and added it to a cup of 50% a.p. flour and corn flour. Thw chicken was brined for 1 hour in a brine spiced with black pepper, bay leaf and whole clove.

 As you should be able to see, the seasoning added a touch of color to the flour. The chicken was allowed to sit for another hour to cure the coating. I used my cast iron frying pan, cause that is what you are supposed to use for frying chicken, and corn/canola oil about 1" deep to fry them up. I use an unusual method for checking oil temperature, I dip the end of a bamboo hashi (chopstick) and look for bubbles, a moderate amount of bubbling means it is ready. Here they are in the pan.

I made sure the oil was bubbling moderately, not too hot, and let each side cook at least 15 minutes. I really do not want to start flipping the chicken, it needs to cook through one side first. It is very important to monitor the heat to prevent burning. Here they are done and drained.

I really want the chicken to get that slightly darker pan scorching, it makes the skin that much more flavorful. The other thing I look for is skin that is tender, not chewy or impossible to bite through. I got it right tonight, crisp, crunchy and bite through all at once.

The rub definitely adds a flavor punch to the coating that makes the dish, I think the seasoning worked out perfectly for this application.