Judy Hesser’s Oven-Fried Chicken

I am always craving fried chicken.  I would give anything to find a good Southern fried chicken place locally.  I always think of Nashville when I think of the best fried chicken I've had in my life...  Anyway, I saw this and decided to give it a try.  

• 3 tablespoons sea salt (divided, plus more for serving)
• 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs 
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground coarse black pepper (plus more for serving)
• "Traeger" Fin & Feather seasoning

When I woke up I made the brine.  I combined 2 tablespoons salt and a cup of warm water in a large container, stirring to dissolve the salt.   I added the chicken to the container.  It was covered with very cold water and a tray of ice cubes. I mixed everything with my hand to spread them around. This went in the the refrigerator until dinner time.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Remove the chicken from the fridge and pat dry completely with paper towels.  Sprinkle each piece with the Traeger seasoning, top and bottom.  Put a pan in the oven to heat up that can hold the chicken uncrowded in one even layer.  I used a large griddle pan.  In a large freezer bag, pour in the flour, tablespoon of salt and the pepper. Shake until well mixed. Add the chicken pieces two at a time and shake them until thoroughly coated. As you lift them out of the bag, shake them off vigorously.  You do not want a gummy coating. Line them up on a sheet pan, and repeat with the rest.

Take the pan out of the oven and rub the butter over until it melts, coating the base.  Lay the chicken pieces on the pan, skin side down, and oven-fry until a chestnut brown and crisp on the bottom, about 40 minutes (sometimes it takes as long as an hour). 

Don’t flip them until this happens. Use a thin spatula to scrape them up off the pan and turn them; cook the other side until the bottom is browned, which will take less time, around 10 - 20 minutes. Remove the pieces from the oven as they finish cooking, and place on a plate lined with paper towels. Crack fresh pepper over top and sprinkle lightly with sea salt.  Serve.

Well dang, that was some of the best fried chicken I have eaten!  Again, something so simple that was simply divine.  While I was serving mine I heard my son crunch down on his chicken and then he exclaimed, "OMG, this is fantastic!!!".  This will be my new "go to" when in the mood for fried delightfulness.