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My Fried Chicken Experiment: Crispy but Bland

I've checked many of the old threads and didn't find my specific problem addressed.

I made fried chicken for the first time last night. I marinated in buttermilk overnight, took it out of the fridge an hour before so it wasn't cold. I used flour, baking powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and white pepper and cayenne pepper.

I let the buttermilk drip off, dredged and left out while the oil came up to 350 (I did use a thermometer). Oil temp never went below 275, and I boosted the flame to bring it back up quickly.

The verdict was the chicken meat was flavorful and good texture. The breasts were actually tastier than the thighs, which I found surprising.

The skin, though was almost too crispy and not at all flavorful. To me, a good skin is at least half of the joy of fried chicken.

Since this was my first time frying anything (I've sauteed, roasted, braised, baked, grilled, poached), and it was an experient, I'll try it again but I'm not sure what to change.

Any tips from experienced chicken fryers?

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  1. Mix some of your seasoning together and sprinkle it on the chicken as soon as it comes out of the oil.

    1. Did you season the flour or the chicken? I have quit seasoning the flour, and use the seasoning in the marinade or directly on the skin if I don't use a marinade. Then, I flour....

      1. I can't say I'm an experienced chicken fryer but for cooking chicken in general, I always dry brine. Try sprinkling your chicken pieces liberally in salt and leave in the fridge overnight. This always produces deeply flavorful chicken for me.

        1. season the chicken itself

          1. I marinade my chicken in seasonings only overnight. Then I dip in a seasoned flour mix, then deep fry. We like spicy and overloaded in flavour, so I don't stint on the seasonings at all. Mine are plenty flavourful.