Oven Roasted Buttermilk Chicken | Swanky Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What does buttermilk do to chicken? ›

The slightly acidic buttermilk helps tenderise the chicken by breaking down some of the proteins in the meat. Because buttermilk is nice and thick, it also sticks well to the chicken, meaning you get a great coating when you dip it into the flour.

Directions. Soak chicken in buttermilk with garlic, onions, herbs, paprika, and cayenne pepper. Refrigerate overnight or at least 8 hours.

A milk marinade produces a super tender chicken, which melts in the mouth because milk contains lactic acid, which breaks down muscle fibers in the meat. Additionally, the best milky marinade for chicken is one that uses a fermented milk product, such as buttermilk or yogurt.

It's not necessary to rinse the chicken after marinating it in milk. Simply pat the chicken dry with paper towels before cooking it. This will help to ensure that the milk and any added flavors from the marinade are absorbed into the chicken during the cooking process.

When marinating chicken in buttermilk, there's no need to rinse it before cooking. In fact, rinsing would wash away a lot of the flavor your just infused! Simply remove the chicken from the buttermilk and let the excess marinade drip off. Discard any excess marinade.

Ideally, you would do a buttermilk brine for a MINIMUM amount of TWO-THREE hours, to as much as OVERNIGHT or EIGHT to NINE hours. The acid in the buttermilk can react with the meat protein and cause it to become mushy if you leave it in the marinade too long.

Next, once the meat is marinated, remove it from the buttermilk and PAT IT DRY. You're going to use up a few paper towels (or kitchen towels if you're OK with that). BUT DO NOT RINSE THE MEAT. Just be very diligent and pat the meat dry with a towel.

You don't start dry

The first step to breading chicken is crucial: Make sure the chicken is completely dry before starting the dredging process. Using a paper towel, pat the meat dry on all sides. Excess moisture will cause the flour to get soggy, meaning it will not adhere properly to the chicken.

It is safe to keep the food in the marinade longer, but after two days it is possible that the marinade can start to break down the fibers of the meat, causing it to become mushy.

If you're planning to brine chicken in buttermilk, to fry or roast it, you're in luck – you can use thinned yogurt or soured milk.

Does buttermilk change the taste of chicken? ›

The buttermilk seems to tenderise the chicken and accent its own flavour. This recipe features a spiced up coating but you can simplify it for kids if you like.

But I can tell you that if you've been attempting fried chicken sandwiches at home, and something is... missing... it is probably pickle juice. Fast food chains are using pickle juice in their chicken brine which packs a punch of flavor and helps gives the chicken that incredible flavor and tenderness.

short answer, no. The chicken would become over marinated and be spongy. The bacterial culture in the buttermilk is what breaks down the chicken, too much and you have spongy weird tasting meat. In fact, you should marinate no more than 24 hours.

It's best to remove excess marinade from the chicken breast before frying to prevent it from becoming too wet and causing the oil to splatter. You can use a paper towel to gently pat the chicken dry before placing it in the hot oil.

The process of soaking the meat in salted water causes the chicken to absorb some of the water through osmosis, making it moister when cooked. You can also work with dry brines, which lead to crispy skin and keep the natural moisture in the bird without the hassle of a wet brine.

The meat will be tenderized, and you will notice the gamey taste is nearly gone or has been completely eliminated. Buttermilk is a secret weapon of many restaurant chefs. They pre-soak chicken, fish and other meats overnight before cooking to give it a hint of tanginess.