Spicy Garlic Crunch Chicken

Marcus turned eighteen on Tuesday. Eighteen years old. The number sits in my mouth like a stone — heavy, round, undeniable. I remember the day he was born with the kind of clarity that time usually blurs but has somehow sharpened, the way a knife sharpens with use. He came into the world at 3:47 in the morning at UAB Hospital, screaming with a voice that filled the room, and Calvin cried, and I held this boy — six pounds eleven ounces, dark eyes, his father's brow and my mouth — and I thought: everything I cook from now on, I cook for you.

The birthday dinner was his choice: fried chicken, mac and cheese with extra cheese, collard greens, cornbread, and peach cobbler. The same meal he has requested for his birthday since he was old enough to request, which was approximately age four. I made it the way I always make it — with the attention to detail that Mama taught me and the love that nobody had to teach me because love in the kitchen is instinct, not instruction.

CJ called from Huntsville to wish Marcus happy birthday. Destiny called from UAB. Doris sent a card. Mama called and told Marcus to be a good man, which is what Mama tells every person on their birthday regardless of age or gender, because Mama believes goodness is the only gift worth giving and the only one worth receiving. Marcus said yes ma'am. He means it. I can hear in his voice when he means it, and he means it every time he says it to Mama, because you do not perform politeness with Bernice Simms. You perform truth, or you perform nothing.

Calvin gave Marcus a Bible — new, leather-bound, with his name embossed on the cover. He inscribed it at the kitchen table while I frosted the birthday cake, which was chocolate because Marcus has always chosen chocolate, and I made three layers because eighteen deserves three layers and because I was not going to send my boy into adulthood with a two-layer cake. Three layers. Three cheeses in the mac. Three kinds of love at this table: a father's prayer, a mother's food, and a boy's appetite that is finally old enough to be called a man's appetite, though I will keep calling him my boy because he is and he will be until I am done calling him anything.

He blew out the candles. I did not see what he wished for. I did not need to. I have my own wish for him, and it is simple: a full life, a full table, and the knowledge that he was loved from the first breath to the last plate. That is the wish. That is always the wish. Happy birthday, baby. Happy eighteen.

The fried chicken is always the heart of Marcus’s birthday table — fourteen years of the same request, and I have never once been tempted to change it, because why would you change something that is already right. This Spicy Garlic Crunch Chicken is the version I come back to when I want that crust to shatter and that garlic to hit deep and warm, the kind of chicken that makes everyone go quiet at the table for a moment before the compliments start. If you’re building a birthday spread for someone who deserves the real thing, this is where you start.

Prep Time: 20 minutes (plus 4 hours marinating) | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 4 hours 50 minutes | Servings: 6

Ingredients

3 1/2 lbs bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces (drumsticks, thighs, and breasts)
2 cups buttermilk
1 tablespoon hot sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Vegetable oil, for frying (about 4 cups)
Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish

Instructions

Marinate the chicken. Whisk together the buttermilk, hot sauce, and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt in a large bowl. Add the chicken pieces, turning to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight for best results. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before frying to take the chill off.
Make the dredge. In a wide, shallow dish, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, garlic powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, onion powder, black pepper, dried thyme, and remaining 1 teaspoon kosher salt until fully combined. The cornstarch is what gives you that extra-shattering crust, so don’t skip it.
Dredge the chicken. Lift each piece from the buttermilk, letting the excess drip off, then press firmly into the flour mixture on all sides. Set the coated pieces on a wire rack set over a baking sheet and let them rest for 10 minutes. This helps the coating adhere and keeps it from sliding off in the oil.
Heat the oil. Pour vegetable oil into a large, heavy-bottomed skillet or Dutch oven to a depth of about 2 inches. Heat over medium-high until it reaches 350°F on an instant-read thermometer. Maintain this temperature throughout frying — too low and the crust absorbs oil; too high and it burns before the chicken cooks through.
Fry the chicken. Working in batches to avoid crowding, lower the chicken pieces gently into the oil. Fry drumsticks and thighs for 12 to 14 minutes, turning once halfway through, until deep golden brown and the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Breasts take about 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a clean wire rack to drain; do not use paper towels or the crust will steam and soften.
Make the spicy garlic finish. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Add the minced garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes until fragrant but not browned. Stir in the honey and remove from heat.
Finish and serve. Drizzle the warm spicy garlic butter over the fried chicken while it’s still hot on the rack, or brush it on lightly if you prefer a less sauced finish. Scatter chopped fresh parsley over the top and bring it to the table immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Spicy Garlic Crunch Chicken — The Birthday Dinner Marcus Always Asks For