Fried Chicken and Gravy

Ok, so maybe you are all experts at cooking chicken, but my chicken-cooking track record hasn't been that great. It always came out of the oven kind of...chickeny; a rubbery, chickeny sort of taste. Yuck. So imagine how happy I was when, after doing some internet research on the art of cooking chicken, I came across this recipe for fried chicken, tried it out, and almost fell off my chair when I took the first bite because it was delicious!! One tip (which I learned during my internet research) that seemed to work well for us was to brine the chicken breasts for just 20 minutes or so before coating them. (Brining = immersing them in a salt water solution of 1/2 cup kosher salt (or 1/4 cup table salt) in two quarts of water).

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup paprika (I didn't actually use this because we didn't have any)
2 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp pepper
1 Tbsp ground mustard
1/2 Tbsp dried thyme
1 tsp ground ginger (didn't have this either)
1/2 tsp dried oregano

Additional Ingredients:

2 eggs
1/2 c. milk
4-6 chicken breasts
vegetable oil

Directions:

In a bowl, combine the first eight ingredients; mix well. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for up to 1 year.

To prepare chicken: In a large skillet, heat 1/2 in. of oil over medium-high heat. (Oil should be fairly hot before you put the chicken in; this prevents the chicken soaking up oil and getting soggy.) Place about 3/4 cup of coating in a large resealable plastic bag. In a shallow dish, beat eggs and milk. Dip chicken pieces into egg mixture, then place in the bag. Seal and shake until coated. Brown chicken on all sides, cooking until done. Place chicken on a cooling rack (like for cookies) with something underneath to drip onto. (Again, this keeps the coating crispy.)

Gravy:

Whisk 1-2 Tbsp of the leftover coating mixture with milk, bring to a slow boil and allow to thicken. Delicious over the chicken and mashed potatoes!!