This Crispy Beer Fried Chicken incorporates a beer batter to create a shatteringly crisp coating containing the subtle flavor of beer and seasonings.
When your beer fried chicken hits the dinner table, I recommend everyone run to grab some before it vanishes into a pile of eagerly gnawed bones. Unless of course, you are carrying scissors, don't run with scissors. Though I suppose if you are stealing them, it is OK to run with scissors. No one wants to be a convicted scissors thief. I don't think they serve crispy beer fried chicken in prison.
Ingredients Needed
You can use any type of chicken pieces you prefer to fry. Breasts, thighs, and drumsticks all work exceptionally well. The method for breading and frying them is the same either way.
Dredging bowl #1 - The dry mixture
- Flour
- Seasonings - Salt, black pepper, cayenne, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder.
Dredging bowl #2 - The beer batter
- Flour
- Beer - Any cheap American lager works just fine.
- Salt & Pepper
- Eggs beaten
How to make crispy fried chicken
What makes this chicken so shatteringly crisp? The chicken pieces are triple dipped for maximum crunchy goodness! The incorporation of a beer batter also creates a slightly thicker crust which flour adheres to more easily in the final dredge. This is how the Colonel would have fixed fried chicken if he was from Wisconsin.
I don't ever fry chicken without having a good digital thermometer to track the oil temperature. If the oil is too cool your chicken will become an oil-logged grease pit, if the oil is too hot the breading will burn before the meat is cooked.
How to serve it
These can be enjoyed naked, or tossed with your favorite BBQ sauce for a finger-lickingly sticky meal. However, if any of your guests like flaming hot fried chicken, consider finishing off a few pieces like my Nashville Hot Chicken, tossed in fryer oil and seasonings. Seriously, it is my favorite way to eat chicken, I highly recommend doing it with chicken strips as well.
Tips and Tricks
- The beer batter should be thinner than pancake batter. You want a thin coating on the chicken. If it is too thick thin it out with a little more beer. If it gets a little too thin, add some flour.
- For even more crunch, dredge the breaded chicken in the flour mixture additional times. As the breaded chicken cuts rest the beer batter will soak through and wetten the flour on the surface. Once moist it can be re-dredged.
More Fried Food
Shatterlingly Crispy Beer Fried Chicken
Ingredients
Dredging bowl #1
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons table salt
- 2 tablespoons fresh ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon cayenne
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons onion powder
Dredging bowl #2
- 1 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups beer
- 2 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 eggs beaten
Frying
- Vegetable oil for frying
- 3 lbs chicken legs breasts, and/or thighs
Instructions
Battering
- Add all ingredients for dredging bowl #1 into a large bowl or pan and mix to combine.
- Do the same in a separate bowl with the ingredients for dredging bowl #2.
- Check the consistency of the beer batter and adjust the thickness as needed.
- Working in batches, dredge the chicken in bowl #1 (flour and seasonings) and then bowl #2 (beer batter) and finally bowl #1 again, shaking off the excess each time.
Frying
- Add enough vegetable oil to a cast iron pan so that the chicken will be at least half way submerged when added to the oil. ~2" deep
- Heat oil to 350 degrees and add chicken pieces in single layer, working in batches as needed.
- Halfway through cooking flip the chicken over to ensure even cooking.
- Chicken is done when meat registers 165 degrees on a digital thermometer. 15-20 minutes.
Derrick
Awesome recipe. I think this might become my specialty meal.
Nancy Skaggs
I am a southerner and pride myself in my fried chicken. I'm going to try this recipe because it looks like a no fail!! Will let you know!!
Leigh Ann Vargason
has any one tried cooking in an airfryer?
Marie
I took two large breasts and did a little pounding on them to get an even size. Then, I sprinkled a little Kosher salt and a light sprinkling of lemon pepper on the breasts and let them rest a bit before slicing them up into strips.
I used two large breasts instead of the recipe recommendations. I then halved the recipe in general but doubled the spices and added a bit of coriander.
The higher the heat and the thinner the batter will make for a flakier crust.
Overall, if you follow the instructions and ingredients it can be pretty tame.
Rest the chicken on paper towels after to keep it from getting soggy from the grease after frying!
Gwen Anaya
I tried this recipe since it was so much simpler than others I've seen. I've never made a beer batter chicken for fear of messing it up but I have to say this was the best fried chicken we've had in a long time. My kids went nuts over it. Even the next day for lunch I just popped it in the toaster oven and it came out like I had just made it. And the flavor was amazing. Thank you for sharing such a great recipe with us! BTW, have you tried this batter with shrimp?
Fox Valley Foodie
I am glad you liked it! I have not tried the recipe with shrimp, but I think it would be fantastic!
Josh Hight
This recipe makes the most bomb fried chicken I’ve ever tasted, my girlfriend thought I was a superhero and instagrammed the delicious fruit of my labors. Will claim this is a secret family recipe in the future.
Heather
This may be a dumb question but I have never done a beer batter. Does the beer need to be cold? Or room temp? Does it matter?
Thanks!
Fox Valley Foodie
It won't matter either way!
Heather
Thank you! I’m going to try out the recipe tonight.
Heather
So my husband said this was the best fried chicken I’ve ever made. Thanks for the recipe!
Rebecca
Just curious if anyone has tried this in a air fryer? Or the Gizzards? My dad can't have aby fried I. Oil foods and he sure misses fried chicken and gizzards. So I'm praying that in a air fryer they both might be just as good. Thanks Ya all. Loved this recipe btw... I fried in oil for myself and son and hands down the absolute best fried chicken I've ever had. Shhh just don't tell my grandma
Spirals
Oh, how funny--I was browsing recipes and came across this. I thought, "There are lots of Fox Valleys in the U.S. so it may not even be this one." Well, it is! Hi, neighbor. I was a vegetarian for 5 years then went back to fish for a year and as of two weeks ago I've been working my way through various land animals. I just had some fried chicken and I remembered why people like it. I'm sure your recipe is better than my frozen dinner.
Fox Valley Foodie
I always love it when a local pops in to say hi!
Kelsey
I loved it. I’ve personally never fried chicken before today and this recipe is amazing. The crunch alone made me fall in love. I will definitely be sharing so more people can enjoy the goodness I tasted today.
Fox Valley Foodie
Isn't the crunch insane?
Emily
So crispy and delicious!!!
Matt
Dredged three times, that is going to be crunchy! This looks delicious, I love good homemade fried chicken, nothing better.
Sandra
I hesitated for over 15 minutes on the 2tbsp of cayenne pepper but found no spicy warning. 😱 my stomach my mouth my throat waiting on the burning ass, lol. Was so impressed how no matter what the batter did not flake off the chicken. Just wish i heeded my own instinct for myself on the amt of cayenne with paprika.
Fox Valley Foodie
To clarify, the recipe only calls for 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Hopefully, your concoction was still edible!