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Long John Silver’s-Style Chicken Dinner

Crispy Long John Silver’s-style chicken planks with hush puppies and batter crumbs for a full fried chicken dinner at home.

Prep
35 minutes
Cook
25 minutes
Serves
3 to 4 servings

What you need

Chicken Planks & Batter Crumbs

  • 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders
  • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/4 teaspoon black or white pepper
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 1/4 cups cold club soda
  • Neutral oil, for frying
  • Ketchup, for serving

Hush Puppies

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/4 cups cornmeal
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 cup very finely minced or grated yellow onion
  • 1 cup buttermilk, plus a little more only if needed
  • 1 egg
  • Neutral oil, for frying

THE PLAN.

  1. Pat the chicken tenders dry. Heat 2 to 3 inches of oil in a heavy pot to 350 to 360 F.
  2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, pepper, and cornstarch for the chicken batter.
  3. Slowly stir in the cold club soda. Stop when combined; a few lumps are fine. The batter should be loose enough to drip from the chicken.
  4. Mix the hush puppy flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt, onion powder, and onion.
  5. Whisk together the buttermilk and egg, then stir the wet mixture into the hush puppy dry ingredients. The batter should be thick but scoopable; add a little more buttermilk only if needed. Chill 30 minutes if time allows.
  6. Working in small batches, dip the chicken in the batter and let the excess drip off. Lower it carefully into the oil, keeping pieces separate.
  7. Fry the chicken 4 to 6 minutes, turning as needed, until deeply golden and the thickest piece reaches 165 F. Transfer to a wire rack and lightly salt while hot.
  8. To make the batter crumbs, drizzle a little remaining batter into the hot oil with tongs or a spoon. Fry until crisp and golden, then drain on the rack.
  9. For the hush puppies, carefully scoop tablespoon-sized portions of batter into 350 F oil. Fry, turning occasionally, until dark golden brown and cooked through, about 4 to 6 minutes.
  10. Serve the chicken planks with batter crumbs, hush puppies, and ketchup.

Credit where it is due

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