Old fashioned Skillet Fried Chicken with Homemade Chicken Gravy. The preparation is simple but attention to details important. The right kind of oil at just the right temperature and knowing when to turn the chicken are important. Learn how, step by step.
Skillet fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy with a side of green beans. This is the first meal I ever learned how to prepare.
I know my chicken frying. A third-generation Kansas farm girl, I grew up on my mother’s family recipe for Crisco fried chicken. On the farm, my father would kill a chicken, my mother would dress it, cut it up and promptly place it in a large pot of salted water to brine for a coupe of hours.
This ended up on our dinner table several times a week during wheat harvest when we had a table full of hired hands helping my father with the farm work.
The preparation was simple but attention to details important. The right kind of oil at just the right temperature and knowing when to turn the chicken…all were important.
Never did we jazz up the breading mixture with things like buttermilk, corn flakes or herbs. And use a deep fryer??? Never.
I wouldn’t touch our classic recipe. The results, sweet milk gravy over creamy mashed potatoes and perfectly crunchy fried chicken. One whole fryer chicken, cut in pieces. Don’t you dare try to get all healthy on me and remove the skin…it won’t work…don’t bother. After your skin-on chicken pieces have been soaking in salt water for at least an hour…let’s get started with the oil.
I’ve never fried chicken in anything but Crisco. As far as I know nothing fries up chicken better than Crisco. I only make fried chicken a couple times a year, so I figure a little Crisco isn’t going to hurt anybody.
About three giant heaping tablespoons ought to do it. Make sure to use a large fry pan with deep sides. This time I tried my cast iron skillet. It worked great, but any large fry pan will do. Turn the burner to medium high.
Remove the chicken pieces from the brine and pat dry. While the oil is heating in the pan fill a dinner plate with flour. Mix in about a teaspoon each of salt and pepper.
Dredge each chicken piece on both sides in the flour mixture. As you work, place the pieces in the pan with the oil that has reached 350 – 375 degrees. Use a themometer to test the heat of the oil. If it’s not hot enough the chicken will absorb the oil which will keep it from getting nice and crispy. You can also sprinkle a bit of flour in the pan and if it sizzles I know it’s ready. In the meantime, turn on the burner under those peeled potatoes you’ve cut up for your mashed potatoes.
Once you have all the chicken pieces situated in the pan, let them fry at a bubbling speed for about 10-15 minutes.
With a fork, take a peek to see if you’ve achieved just the right golden crust. Nope, not ready yet.
I’ve just turned this thigh. Now that’s perfect.
Continue to turn the pieces as they reach that crispness and brown on the other side for another 15 minutes, or so. After both sides are crunchy and browned, I briefly cover the pan and let everything steam for about 5 minutes only. Any longer will turn that crusty goodness soft. I’m just doing this to make sure the internal meat is cooked through.
Having removed all of the pieces, pay special attention to the two large breast pieces by turning them on their sides for a few minutes. Just want to make sure each side has that crust. Total time to cook a full pan of chicken is about 30-40 minutes.
Before we start the gravy, dip out about 1/2 cup of that starchy water that the potatoes have left behind from boiling.
Now we’re ready to make the gravy. While the chicken is resting on paper towels, carefully pour off the oil leaving about 3 tablespoons in the fry pan. Make sure you don’t let any of those brown crunchies on the bottom escape the pan. That’s what really makes a gravy flavorful.
With burner on medium low, add an equal amount of flour and stir into a roux.
Continue to cook for about 5 minutes, sprinkling in a little more flour if you feel the consistency isn’t thick enough. You’ve got to get this part right because you can’t add any more flour after this step, or you’ll get those undesirable lumps.
Add about a cup of milk. Stirring constantly allow mixture to thicken. Stir in about 1/2 cup of reserved potato water and continue to cook. As it bubbles and thickens add a little milk at a time to achieve that perfect gravy consistency.
Mash those potatoes with some butter and milk and just enough salt and pepper. Serve it up with some green beans that have been tossed with some cooked chopped onion and bacon pieces. Don’t forget to drag the green beans through some of the potatoes and gravy as you’re scooping them up. I always grab for the thighs…love that dark meat. Are you a white meat or dark meat kinda person?
Recipe for Pan Fried Chicken and Gravy
I hope you give this recipe for pan fried chicken and gravy a try, and if you do, please come back and leave a comment about your experience and give the recipe a star rating. I always love hearing from my readers.
Step by Step Pan Fried Chicken and Gravy
Ingredients
- 1 chicken cut into pieces
- 1/2 cup Crisco enough to cover the chicken pieces half way up
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 cups flour for dredging chicken
- For the gravy:
- 3 tablespoons drippings oil from the fried chicken
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup starchy water from boiling potatoes
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- – 3 hours before frying chicken, place chicken pieces in a large bowl of water that’s been heavily salted. Drain chicken pieces and pat dry with paper towels. Place flour on a plate and dredge chicken pieces until well coated.
- Melt Crisco in a deep sided large fry pan. A cast iron skillet works great. When oil reaches around 375 degrees start placing the floured chicken in the hot oil. Cook until well browned, checkin pieces. As soon as the pieces start to brown, turn them and cook on the other side until well browned. When done, turn down heat to medium and cover with lid. Cook about 3 minutes just to make sure chicken is cooked through.
- Remove pieces to a paper towel.
- For the Gravy: Drain oil from pan so that about 3 tablespoons remain. Return to medium heat and add flour to oil. Cook 2 – 3 minutes or until flour is starting to turn color. If the mixture seems thin, add a bit more flour. Add milk and starchy water from the potatoes you’ve cooked. Let it bubble until thickened. Add more milk if necessary to get that gravy consistency.
Nutrition
Skillet Fried Chicken and Gravy … It’s Whats For Dinner
Looks exactly like my moms… fixed in cast iron with good ole Crisco and that’s the way I’ve always done it too. My mom always called it milk gravy & she got the most beautiful color on her roux before adding the milk. Too bad more people don’t learn to cook at an early age with simple ingredients…. Thanks for sharing
Hi Abby – thanks so much for the comment.
I can’t imagine making fried chicken using anything BUT Crisco. And isn’t this meal in all it’s entirety just the best. It’s the first thing my mom ever taught me to make – which is surprising, it can be a little fickle to get that chicken just right.
And actually I think my mom called it milk gravy too. A little trick she taught me to do was add some of the starchy potato water to the milk gravy as it was thickening. She learned that from living through the Great Depression – saved on milk.
Thanks for your note – now let’s go fry up some chicken. 🙂
How much flour exactly