Cured fried chicken

Some time ago (yes, it's been months ago...) was Thanksgiving and there in my Youtube feed the turkeys flew deep again.
One of the methods of preparation I found particularly interesting was curing before roasting, which should make the meat tender and juicier.

I was a little surprised how the salting of meat is supposed to bring moisture into it, because my remnants of understanding from my school days showed that the osmosis functioned somehow differently.

I still believed the chefs once and wanted to try it out.

But now that I didn't really want to make a whole turkey, I made it first with a smaller poultry and it was a complete success. I can't imagine making fried chicken ever again.

It only takes a long time, unfortunately...

The meat was tender and juicy and tasted great.

You need for 4 persons

1 chicken. (1.2 - 1.5 kg, if possible freewheeling, for many reasons, rinsed off as you usually do)

1/2 cup salt

1/2 cup sugar

3 tablespoons oil

Spices to taste. (it was smoked paprika powder and salt lemon)

You will also need: water, a freezer bag in which the animal doesn't fit too loosely, and later an oven with a grill and drip pan underneath, or a chicken rack as shown in the photo, and space in the fridge.

Boil a cup of water with the sugar and salt until everything is dissolved. (Don't try the mixture, it's disgusting.) Allow to cool completely.

Place the chicken in the bag and pour the cooled solution over it and top up with plenty of cold water until the chicken is covered. Close the bag tightly and leave in the refrigerator for 6-8 hours. I did it the night before.

After time, remove the animal from the bag, dab it off and place it on a plate and put it back in the refrigerator to dry, again for 6-8 hours. I did that in the morning to prepare it in the evening.

After this time you can finally fry the chicken. To do this, take it out of the refrigerator and preheat the oven to 220°. The chicken can now be seasoned as desired, but I mixed the oil, with which you have to brush it before frying, with paprika powder and smeared the chicken.

Then place it on the grill and place the dripping pan underneath, or place it on the chicken rack and put it in the oven at 220°.

After 15 minutes, lower to 180° and bake for approx. 25 minutes per 500g. After 30 minutes cover loosely with aluminium foil.

When the juice clearly runs out at the thickest point, the meat is cooked.

After the end of the cooking time let it rest for another 15 minutes and enjoy.

It's a bit more time consuming than usual, but it really does make an incredible difference.