Rosemary Garlic Chicken Fried Chicken

Chicken fried chicken. You see it on the menus at restaurants all the time. You wonder what it means.

Are they trying to portray some sort of suave James Bond-ishness? "The name's Chicken. Fried Chicken."


Did they write "chicken" on the menu and as an afterthought realize that this was not specific enough and so add "fried chicken" again at the end?

Do they simply want to reiterate the chickeny-ness of the said menu item?

Do they think that "chicken fried" qualifies as an adjective to describe the way that the chicken was prepared? "How would you like your chicken, ma'am? Chicken fried, fish fried, or egg fried"?

But you know what? It doesn't really matter how its name came into being. All I know is that when I order it, the nice people bring me a big, juicy, crispy hunk of fried chicken on top of a bed of mashed potatoes and smothered in a creamy, white, peppery gravy.

My sister Nemo and I used to always order this every single time we went out to eat. We would split it and ask for fries instead of vegetables.

Now we like green beans on the side. That's because we're all grown up and mature.


Rosemary Garlic Chicken Fried Chicken

1/2 cup crushed cornflakes
1/2 cup whole wheat flour (because if there's one thing I want to accentuate in my fried foods, it is their healthiness.)
1 1/2 T fresh rosemary, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 cup water
Another cup of whole wheat flour
3 chicken breasts (I used ones with skin and bones this time)
Peanut oil  and a few tablespoons of butter for frying

In a shallow dish, combine the 1/2 cup of flour, cornflakes, rosemary, minced garlic, salt and pepper.
In another shallow dish, combine the egg and water.
In a third shallow dish, put the rest of the flour.

Dip each chicken breast in the egg, then the flour, then the egg again, and finally in the cornflake and rosemary mixture. Make sure that the chicken is coated well in each dunk.

Fill a large frying pan with about 1/4 inch of peanut oil. Add a few tablespoons of butter. Put on medium heat on the stove top.

Once the oil is hot, add the chicken. Cook evenly on both sides and cook until the center is completely white and opaque. Do not overcook. Get it off as soon as you possibly can or it will be dry and nasty.

Let them drain on a wire cooling rack so they don't get soggy.


For the Gravy:

1 cup water
2 bouillon cubes
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
3 tablespoons of flour
1/2 cup or so half and half

In a sauce pan, dissolve the bouillon in the water (or just use a cup of chicken stock).
Add the pepper, garlic salt, and flour. Whisk well until there are no more lumps.
Put on medium high heat and whisk constantly until thickened, scraping the bottoms so it doesn't burn.
Add half and half until desired consistency is reached.