Mama's Fried Chicken

Tonight, while I was watching the Braves game (they are up 14.5 games and are in the middle of an awesome winning streak, by the way...Go Braves!), my mama decided to get a little jump start on the cookbook project for me.  She cooked an awesome dinner of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, butter beans, and rolls.  And, she even made Trisha Yearwood's blueberry muffins for dessert.

One of the reasons that my mother and I love Trisha Yearwood's cookbook so much is that she cooks simple, country food.  You don't need tons of fancy, expensive ingredients for her recipes.  The way she makes her fried chicken (page 93 of Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen) is almost exactly the same way my great-grandmother, Mamaw Hall, made hers.

The secret to the BEST fried chicken is all about preparation!  To keep the chicken from tasting bland, you HAVE to salt the chicken ahead of time and give it some time to soak in all that flavor!  My grandmother used to cook for the entire family every Sunday.  She had three daughters and would have them and their families come over for lunch after church every week.  One thing that she almost always had for those Sunday dinners was fried chicken.  Her's was the best!  It was so moist and flavorful, and the secret was that she would cut the chicken up and salt it on Saturday night and let it sit in the refrigerator overnight.  Trisha's cookbook says to soak it in a salt brine (water and salt), but Mamaw never used the water.  She would just salt it really good and put it in a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap. 

I can't tell you how many people have asked my mama for her secret to making such good fried chicken.  They always look so shocked when she tells them that all she puts on it is salt and flour.  I guess they think that's just too simple, but that's what I love about Southern cooking.  It is easy!

 

 Mama's Fried Chicken like Mamaw Hall used to make.

Trisha Yearwood's Blueberry Muffins

(Recipe on page 158 of Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen)