FLOWER POT KITCHEN: KFC CRISPY ONION PAKORAS

3 May 2024

KFC CRISPY ONION PAKORAS

GLUTEN FREE OPTION

What is it with the need to crack the secret KFC spice recipe! Finger licking juicy crispy chicken that’s what! Their spice blend recipe and method is why!

I’ve played with the famous 11 spices and this recipe is just as finger licking good, almost there but leaves me knowing without a science lab I’m not going to crack the ratio’s.

This spice dredge I used to make my crispy fried chicken then with the left over dredge I made onion pakoras, these were lick smackingly wonderful.

Fried Chicken

After research I have learnt that the chicken has to be dipped in to a brine bucket before dropping in to the spiced flour dredge, then you have to scoop up the chicken and dredge, fold over and press the chicken down into the rub, squeeze the chicken and rub, then lift up the chicken and tap twice to knock of excess rub. If dredging drumsticks you have to do this twice for the dredge to coat well.

Rest the dredged chicken for 20 minutes on wire racks.

Fry at 150 - 160 C / 302 - 320 F bone in pieces for 8 - 10 minutes and tenders for 4 minutes.

KFC Onion Pakoras

The KFC 11 Spice Blend

1 tbsp salt

1 tbsp white pepper

1 tbsp black pepper

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp celery seed ground

2 tbsp onion powder

2 tbsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp paprika

1 tbsp ginger

1 1/2 cups gram flour (naturally gluten free) or plain flour

3 lrg Spanish onions sliced for pakoras

Mix the spices with the flour.

Toss in the sliced onions and mix throughly until fully coated in the spice flour.

Leave for 30 minutes for the salt to release the water from the onions adding to the flavour.

Add water start with 100ml and add 25 ml at a time until you have a batter the same consistency as double cream.

Leave to rest for 30 minutes.

Heat your frying oil to 170 C / 338 F.

Spoon in heaped spoonfuls of the onion batter a few at a time so as not to over crowed the pan, fry for approximately 4 minutes turning over halfway, until a deep golden brown, remove and rest on paper towel to drain, serve immediately.

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LIFE MY PASSION

Welcome to my daily life of cooking, one winters day many years ago my family and I were all inspired by a back to back rainy day of River Cottage this got us to stop talking about and start actually doing, suddenly three weeks later eight vegetable beds were dug, greenhouse erected and our first vegetables were propagating, this was the start to raising and growing our own food, our fabulous son Oscar changed our path in life which lead us to sell our small thriving restaurant of 10 yrs and to start our new life (Terrifying!) a life of the self sufficient in touch with nature and seasons, taking a step back and looking forward to a slower change of pace and making the most of every moment.

My passion for cooking was stronger than ever and having time at home with Oscar I found I had a new direction and I was no longer striving for perfection, I was suddenly very passionate for the enjoyment of the other side of food, something I had not realised, being the Chef/Cook and every other duty of your own small restaurant made me see that I never actually took time to cook what I wanted!

So there I was muddy boots and hands digging deep in more than one sense and I found myself transported back in time to where everyone grew some of their own food, it is a wonderful world with a real sense of achievement and loss, Slugs Snails and Caterpillars! But thats another story! Childhood memories of summers when I lived with my grand parents reminded me of so much that I had learnt about the make do and mend generation that I had forgotten.

Now as a family we love our free wild food days where we gather what nature has provided, have gone from being mini mini garden urban small holders, who did raised pigs at home because we could not wait to find land and supporting ourselves from our garden to now owning a very small farm that allows us to grow more vegetables for the whole of our family and neighbours, raise our own gorgeous Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs, (Sausages!) and pets! Dorset Down sheep, chickens for eggs and pet goats! Suddenly having large quantities of produce started to wake up the Cook in me!

The Cook was awake that part of me that wants to cook for the masses and I found myself setting up Flowerpot Kitchen, a Farmers Market Stall, I wanted to use our honest raised meats and make old fashioned pork pies, rabbit pies and game pies from the local game keeper along with old fashioned techniques and the best hot water crust pastry. This in turn grew to a small cottage industry from home weekly supplying three farm shops and a deli along with also attending three farmers markets A few years later there came a time when my son Oscar's health changed and it was an easy decision to stop.

I still hold the occasional pop up 40 seater restaurant or gourmet lunch which we do for local charities for the love of sharing food and to remind that Cook in me why I love our go slower self sufficient life!

So here I am sitting amoung the vegetables watching the chickens loving that every season nature teaches me something new and that nature is in charge! She has taught me to just go with it and grow. Give it a try from a tray of salad on your windowsill to a few tomato plants it all counts.