Have your butcher, or yourself, break down each bird by removing and discarding the backbone, then cut the chicken into 8 pieces – 2 breasts, 2 thighs, 2 wings, 2 drumsticks each. Use one or two whole chickens, depending on how many people are being served.I use two different beans, root beer and lots of pantry staples with bacon for an out of this world, perfect side dish. Slow cooked, tender, sweet and savory, that sums up these Root Beer Baked beans. Talk about refreshing! This Mexican Watermelon Salad is a spin on my Mexican Grilled Corn, and with only four ingredients, it’s made in minutes! It’s the perfect fruit salad to bring for any Summertime picnic, potluck or your weekend barbecue! Let me show you How to Make the Classic Potato Salad.

To me the classic potato salad needs to have the right balance of sweet and savory, creamy, tender yet firm potatoes, and not an overload of mayonnaise. Topped with crunchy Panko breadcrumbs and baked to a bubbly, golden brown it’s an undeniable indulgence. I load it with crispy bacon, cheddar, mozzarella and cream cheeses. This way, the coating won’t become soggy, causing a loss of that crunch you worked hard to achieve. Do not leave the fried chicken on paper towels to drain, place the pieces on a wire rack set over paper towels. As it rests after coming out of the oil, it will continue to cook to the food-safe temperature of 165☏. Your southern fried chicken is finished cooking when a cooking thermometer inserted into the thickest portion of each piece reaches 163☏.

Use a cooking thermometer to determine doneness.

You don’t want to drown or fully submerge the chicken 3/4 of the depth of piece should be covered with oil. If you’re using a deep skillet, add enough oil to fill it half way. If using a large Dutch oven, only fill 1/4 full with oil. Remember, you want to fry the chicken, not steam it.

Fry and keep it at a continuous 320-325☏. The temperature will drop when chicken goes in. Get the oil temperature up to 350°-375☏ before adding chicken. Cold chicken directly from the refrigerator will drastically reduce the oil temp and it won’t be hot enough to crisp up the chicken. Allow your chicken to come to room temperature before dropping it into the hot oil.

Seasoned flour for dredging chicken