Emeril, author of Emeril 20-40-60: Fresh Food Fast,was on the Martha Stewart Show making his Creole Fried Chicken recipe… but he also gave some fabulous tips for frying foods in general.  For example, did you know that when you are going to fry food in oil that you should not fill the pot more than 1/2 way with oil, because the oil will expand and grow, especially as you add the chicken or other food to the oil?  Also, Emeril said that the perfect temperature for frying food is 360-370 degrees.  The more food you add to your pot of oil, the cooler the temperature gets… so it is crucial to use a Deep Fry Thermometer or you will get soggy fried chicken or soggy fried other foods.

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Emeril’s Creole Fried Chicken Recipe

Ingredients:
- 4 cups buttermilk
- 1/2 cup creole seasoning (paprika, salt, garlic powder, black pepper, onion powder, cayenne pepper, dried oregano & dried thyme)
- 2 TB coarse salt
- 2 TB sugar
- 1 head garlic, crushed
- 2 chickens cut into 8 pieces
- 4 cups flour
- 2 TB cayenne pepper
- vegetable oil

Directions:
1.  In a big bowl or container, mix the buttermilk, 1/4 cup creole seasoning, sugar, salt and garlic.
2.  Add the chicken pieces to the marinade and let it soak for a few hours or overnight.
3.  In a big ziploc bag, mix together the flour, 1/4 cup creole seasoning and cayenne pepper.
4.  Place the chicken pieces, a few at a time, into the bag and shake until coated.
5.  Let the chicken pieces sit on a wire rack for about 20 minutes.
6.  Bring a pot with 4″ of oil to a medium-high heat (around 300 degrees).
7.  Add a couple of pieces of chicken to the pot of oil with the skin-side down into the oil.
8.  Let it cook for about 10 minutes, and then turn it over and let it cook for another 10 minutes.
9.  Remove the chicken to a plate lined with paper towels.  Serve after 5 minutes of cooling down time!