What are the best Southern Style Chicken recipes you can try in an air fryer? An air fryer is an advanced, cutting-edge appliance for household kitchens, allowing people to cook, fry, and bake a wide range of food items.
Air fryers are versatile, efficient, and quick. You can cook many things in this small appliance and pretty much fast. An air fryer prevents you from dealing with oil quantities, unlike deep frying machines that require you to submerge the food into the oil for more crispiness and brownness.
Research shows that a deep frying machine can cook crispy food, but it is unhealthy due to increased fat content and a higher number of calories. As a result, consuming food cooked in a deep frying machine increases the risk of chronic health conditions, such as diabetes, hypertension, obesity, heart disease, and even cancer due to acrylamide formation.
On the other hand, you don’t have to deal with the oil when using an air fryer. Depending on the recipe, you set the timer, check the food halfway, and achieve a perfectly crisp food within a few minutes.
In addition, many people use air fryers daily, and this product does not take a lot of space and is energy efficient. Not only are air fryers suitable for teenagers, students, but they are also an excellent appliance for wives and moms.
You can cook your favorite food in an air fryer, including grilled sandwiches, French fries, potato chips, chicken nuggets, burgers, vegan food, and even southern style chicken. Air fryers are pretty easy to use and clean. It is a healthy option for people and does not lead to acrylamide formation. Let us now talk about the southern style chicken recipe.
Southern Style Chicken Recipe
Southern style chicken cooked an air fryer is delicious, crispy, and healthy. It is one of the easiest recipes if you use an air fryer, leading to a golden, crunchy, crispy fried chicken. The preparation time is 20 minutes, followed by 20 minutes of cooking time. So, you can achieve a perfect southern-style chicken in 40 minutes.
Ingredients Required and Cooking Procedure
You will need 2lbs of chicken. For instance, you can use six chicken legs. You will also need two teaspoons of sea salt, 1-½ teaspoons of black pepper, 1½ teaspoons of garlic powder, one teaspoon of onion powder, one teaspoon of paprika, one teaspoon Italian seasoning, and one cup of flour.
Ensure you have ¼ cup of cornstarch, one tablespoon hot sauce, ¼ cup water, olive oil, two eggs, and two tablespoons of milk. You can also use buttermilk. Here is the step-by-step process to cook southern style chicken in your air fryer.
- Wash the chicken and set it aside for drying. Combine all seasonings in a bowl
- Coat the chicken thoroughly with about 1-2 tablespoons of the mixture.
- Make sure you add some olive oil to distribute the spice mixture properly.
- Rub the spice mixture and set aside for a few minutes
- Mix flour, cornstarch, and spice mix in a large plastic bag
- Season the flour and add more salt and spices as required
- Use a large dish to mix hot sauce, milk, water, and eggs
- Coat the chicken pieces in the flour mixture
- Shake off the pieces to remove excess flour mixture
- Place the chicken pieces on a tray for some time so that they absorb the flour
- Now, coat the chicken in an egg and milk mixture
- Once done, apply flour mixture lightly and immediately
- Let the chicken pieces rest for about 15-20 minutes so that they absorb the flour
- Use a brush or oil mister to coat the pieces with olive oil
- Now, place the chicken pieces in the basket of your air fryer
- Cook for 10 minutes and flip halfway to brush the olive oil again
- Make sure you cook the chicken at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes
- Remove the chicken and let it rest for 5-7 minutes
- Serve the southern style chicken to your family or friends
Key Takeaways
You can use olive oil or butter to coat the chicken pieces. We recommend olive oil because it leads to more brownness, crispiness, and crunchiness. Make sure you use enough olive oil – otherwise, you will experience a powdery texture, which can compromise the taste.
You will have the same taste and crispiness of the southern style chicken like you cook it in a deep frying machine. Always go easy on the breading and coat the chicken lightly and evenly in the flour and egg mixtures.
A thinner coat of olive oil and egg mixture leads to a crispier taste and golden brown texture. Instead of cooking the southern style chicken in a deep frying machine, you should use an air fryer because the food you cook is healthier with reduced fat content.
Moreover, clean your air fryer before and after the cooking process to ensure your air fryer functions optimally for a prolonged period. Always use a greased basket when cooking the southern style chicken. That way, you can prevent the chicken pieces from sticking to the internal material.
Southern Style Chicken – Final Words
Everyone loves southern style chicken recipes because they are delicious and mouthwatering. However, cooking chicken in a deep frying machine can risk your health and your family’s wellbeing because deep-frying requires submerging the chicken in a large quantity of hot oil.
On the other hand, an air fryer uses hot air circulation technology to cook food. It is crucial to flip the chicken pieces halfway to prevent them from burning. Apply a thin coat of olive oil for proper cooking or roasting.
Preheat the air fryer at 340 or 350 degrees Fahrenheit, depending on the southern style chicken recipe you want to cook. However, this recipe does not require preheating. It depends on your preferences. Use your favorite sauces to double the taste of southern style chicken.
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