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Answers: What are the ingredients you use to marinate chicken? and how long should i prepare it before frying it?
How can I make the gravey?

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Some recipes call for soaking chicken pieces in buttermilk or brining them and draining the pieces well before frying.

Buttermilk is thought to tenderize the chicken. Brining imparts flavor, ensures juiciness and helps any residual blood drain out.

I usually just use Knorr's gravy packets or skip it completely.

Examples of brined chicken & buttermilk soaked chicken:

My friend has used this 1st recipe w/ great success.

Bon Ton Style Fried Chicken
Gourmet | July 2000 Bilko's spice mix is a closely guarded secret, but Donna King shared with us its fundamental ingredients as well as the basic technique — a long marination, at least 24 hours. This results in some of the juiciest chicken we've ever eaten. The chicken must also rest five or ten minutes after being dredged in the seasoned flour to, as King told us, "get doughy." The Bon Ton recipe calls for Ac'cent (monosodium glutamate) in both the marinade and the dredging mixture. We tested it with and without, and the chicken mainly tasted saltier with the Ac'cent, which some people preferred.

Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 25 hr

Makes 4 servings.

ingredients
For marinade
1 qt water
2 tablespoons salt
2 teaspoons cayenne
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons white pepper
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

4 chicken breast halves, 4 thighs, and 4 drumsticks (all with skin and bones; 4 to 4 1/2 lb total)

For frying
About 12 cups vegetable oil

For dredging
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon white pepper
preparation
Marinate chicken: Whisk together all marinade ingredients in a large bowl.

Add chicken, making sure it is covered with marinade. Chill, covered, stirring twice, about 24 hours.

Dredge and fry chicken: Heat 2 inches oil in a wide 8- to 9 1/2-quart pot over moderately high heat until a deep-fat thermometer registers 365 to 375°F. (Our pot was 12 inches wide and 5 inches deep; if you don’t have that wide a pot, you can fry the chicken in two batches.)

Meanwhile, whisk together all dredging ingredients in a large bowl. Drain chicken, discarding marinade. Dredge each piece of chicken in seasoned flour and put on a large baking sheet. Let stand about 10 minutes.

Fry chicken, turning a few times, 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown, then drain on a rack.

Epicurious.com ? CondéNet, Inc. All rights reserved.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/v...

Fried Chicken
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown
Show: Good Eats
Episode: Fry Hard 2: The Chicken (Fried)
1 broiler/fryer chicken, cut into 8 pieces
2 cups low fat buttermilk
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons Hungarian paprika
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Flour, for dredging
Vegetable shortening, for frying

Place chicken pieces into a plastic container and cover with buttermilk. Cover and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours.

Melt enough shortening (over low heat) to come just 1/8-inch up the side of a 12-inch cast iron skillet or heavy fry pan. Once shortening liquefies raise heat to 325 degrees F. Do not allow oil to go over 325 degrees F.

Drain chicken in a colander. Combine salt, paprika, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper. Liberally season chicken with this mixture. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.

Place chicken skin side down into the pan. Put thighs in the center, and breast and legs around the edge of the pan. The oil should come half way up the pan. Cook chicken until golden brown on each side, approximately 10 to 12 minutes per side. More importantly, the internal temperature should be right around 180 degrees. (Be careful to monitor shortening temperature every few minutes.)

Drain chicken on a rack over a sheet pan. Don't drain by setting chicken directly on paper towels or brown paper bags. If you need to hold the chicken before serving, cover loosely with foil but avoid holding in a warm oven, especially if it?s a gas oven.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/...

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I don't think you want to marinate chicken using any liquid containing water - the hot oil will instantly boil the water causing dangerous spatters.

Many deep-frying recipes use a two-step coating prior to the oil frying. First, wash and pat-dry your chicken pieces, then dip them in a bowl of a well-beaten egg or buttermilk. Then dredge them in another bowl or plate of dry flour, preferably with your favorite dry seasonings. Some people repeat the egg or buttermilk and flour dredge to get a thicker coating. Then you carefully lower the chicken pieces in the hot oil in your frying skillet to brown and cook on both sides.

Search your favorite recipe site or newspaper dining and cooking archives for fried chicken recipes. There are thousands of variations.

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the key to marinating is seasoning and ice/batter mixture. Best 2 items to use are red pepper and salt,in a covered dish for at least 6 hours or overnight. A key factor is frying at 350 degrees. Making gravey from fried chicken isn't so tastey,because there's no stock or crumbs to use. just use your favorite chicken gravey mix from a jar or envelope. 30 minutes before you are ready to fry, add one tray of ice to your egg and flour batter and let stand, scoops out the chicken with hands and flour, shake excess and add to oil and fry. The ice and batter mixture shocks the pieces to seal in juices and flavor.

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Marinate it, put it to 325, anything higher is death. When ice cold chicken hits hot oil seals the juices.

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I marinate our chicken in buttermilk, usually over nite. i pour the buttermilk on the chicken about 3pm, and turn it over every hour till bed time about 9pm, and then let it marinate till 12pm when i take it out and start to bread it and fry it up, it is soooooo good.

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