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2 Southern Chicken Recipes - In the series premiere of Positively Paula, Paula, Jamie & Bobby reminisce over their beginnings and the dish that put them on the map—Paula's Southern Fried Chicken recipe. Positively Paula, Season 1, Episode 1.
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00:00 Intro
3:33 Southern Fried Chicken Recipe: https://www.pauladeen.com/recipe/southern-fried-chicken-recipe/
9:50 Chicken Salad Recipe: https://www.pauladeen.com/recipe/jamies-chicken-salad-sandwich-2/
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For more episodes of Positively Paula, click here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2LHabI5sYyFW4fceMhkzsIfer9SGChS6
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0:00
[instrumental music]
0:03
♪
0:19
[upbeat music]
0:22
♪
0:32
- In the South, and I can only speak for the South,
0:35
cooking is an art that is passed down
0:38
from generation to generation.
0:40
We begin to learn when we're children
0:42
and we truly never stop learning.
0:44
Something Mom taught me early on
0:46
was how to make a great chicken salad.
0:49
And that chicken salad was the foundation
0:52
of our first little home business with the Bag Lady.
0:55
We quickly found out that little business
0:57
needed a bigger home, so we took a leap of faith
1:01
and opened our first restaurant,
1:03
which was way harder
1:04
than running a small business out of our house.
1:06
- And that first year was just...
1:10
a blur.
1:14
It was the longest, quickest time of my life.
1:18
She's always been a fantastic cook.
1:23
You know, Mom said many times,
1:24
"I didn't have any skills. All I could do was cook."
1:28
And she had my brother and I,
1:31
who were just sitting around.
1:35
So she said this is my way out.
1:39
I didn't understand it then, but I have two children now
1:42
that I would dedicate the rest of my life
1:45
to ensure that they were good.
1:47
So Mom felt, even though I was 21,
1:49
and had one foot in the ne'er-do-well,
1:51
it was Mom's responsibility to take care of me
1:54
and to take care of my brother.
1:57
And so that's what started all this.
1:59
- Okay, y'all gon' have to run home now.
2:01
- Mom said, "I'm gonna give my boys a better chance."
2:04
And I'm gonna do it through my cooking.
2:09
And that's how it started.
2:16
- Okay, we're gonna make a fabulous stock
2:21
with those bones.
2:23
Well, hey, friends.
2:26
It's me, Paula, and I finally got a day in my kitchen to cook.
2:31
I'm so happy to look up and see
2:33
that y'all are there with me today,
2:35
so why don't we go back to the thing
2:38
that really put us on the map
2:40
when we opened The Lady and Sons?
2:42
Are you up to frying some chicken with me?
2:45
Everybody loves fried chicken.
2:56
I so hope y'all are enjoying the show.
2:59
And if you do.
3:00
Be sure to click like, subscribe and
3:03
notification bell so you'll never miss a video.
3:07
And we'll be right back after the break.
3:12
- My mom is the best at it.
3:13
- Takes me back to childhood,
3:15
just like so many other people.
3:17
- In the South, there's a saying, and it's,
3:19
"You dance with the one that brung you,"
3:20
and the one that brung us is chicken.
3:22
- I probably owe, besides my mother,
3:24
the greatest amount of gratitude to the chicken.
3:27
- But I think what makes my mom's the best
3:29
is the fact that moms make the best everything.
3:32
- You know, I like to take my chicken out
3:35
and let it sit on the counter for about 45 minutes to an hour.
3:38
I like to kind of bring it down to room temperature
3:40
because when we add it to our hot oil,
3:44
if it's ice cold, it's gonna drop that temperature
3:47
and that could really give you soggy chicken.
3:50
So just remember that tip.
3:52
I'm not doing that today 'cause I'm a little short on time.
3:55
But you'll find that that will really give you
3:58
a nicer fried chicken
4:01
if you'll do that.
4:02
So Grandma always taught me--
4:06
I've said it 100 times--
4:08
when I was having chicken for dinner, Paula Ann,
4:11
season your chicken that morning, honey.
4:14
Put it in the refrigerator so it can just drink up
4:17
all those seasonings that you put on it.
4:19
And you know, I have found today,
4:22
I really have to go out and hunt very, very hard
4:26
to find a 2 or 2 1/2-pound chicken.
4:30
They're feeding them something
4:32
that causes those chickens to get so big so quick.
4:36
And a small chicken, to this day, is still the best.
4:41
My mother always said, "Paula,
4:43
don't go bigger than a 2 1/2-pound chicken."
4:46
That's a tall order for today.
4:48
But these breasts are so big.
4:51
Look, they're the size of my face.
4:54
That's a breast.
4:55
So I think that I'm gonna cut this breast
4:59
in two,
5:02
which'll work just fine for me
5:04
because lot of people like just the white meat,
5:08
so that'll give me, like, four breasts instead of two,
5:11
so that'll work out great.
5:14
- And I always liked the white meat.
5:16
I would get the breast. My father would get the breast.
5:18
And my brother would get a chicken leg or something,
5:21
or a chicken wing.
5:22
And so it was a momentous day for my father
5:27
when he had to learn to eat dark meat,
5:29
because my brother found out about the chicken breast,
5:31
and it was only one fryer,
5:33
so I would get one, my brother would get one,
5:34
and then Daddy would get skinnier
5:36
'cause he would get a chicken leg or a chicken wing.
5:38
- Years ago, when I was in my very first little restaurant--
5:42
and it was called The Lady back then--
5:45
and we did taste test after taste test,
5:50
and this seemed to be everybody's favorite.
5:54
I've got three eggs-- three beaten eggs--
5:57
a little water, and now I'm go'' add a cup of my hot sauce.
6:02
And I know right now, you're probably saying,
6:04
"Whoa, Paula,
6:06
that's gon' be so hot we can't eat it."
6:09
But it's really not.
6:10
You don't have any of the heat, but just the flavor.
6:15
That's all you're gonna have.
6:18
So we're gonna...
6:22
dunk our chicken, and I really like, if I have time,
6:27
y'all, I like to go ahead and put this in the refrigerator
6:31
and let this sit for a couple hours.
6:35
You know, and it's funny.
6:36
My grandmother taught me so much along the way.
6:40
I mean, really, basically,
6:41
3/4 of what I know about the kitchen,
6:44
but I don't fry my chicken like my grandmother did.
6:47
That's strange.
6:49
I remember her chicken like it was yesterday.
6:51
- 'Cause it's the best.
6:54
And she would do it--
6:55
see, my mouth just watering while I'm talking about it.
6:57
And she would do it
6:59
old-school Southern style in a cast iron skillet.
7:01
You know, it's, like, Sunday morning, fried chicken.
7:05
It's like these smells bringing back--
7:07
fried green tomatoes, my mama would do.
7:09
- Now you can see the way I'm placing it in my skillet, y'all.
7:12
I'm turning the legs in opposite direction.
7:17
- Your touch, your smell, your sight.
7:19
- Look at this beautiful chicken.
7:22
And people will say,
7:23
"Paula, what makes your chicken so good?"
7:26
- It touches it. It gets everything.
7:28
- Have you ever been in your kitchen and frying something
7:32
and it was quiet and it was peaceful?
7:35
Hear that sound?
7:37
[oil sizzling]
7:40
What does it remind you of?
7:43
Well, I can tell you what it reminds me of.
7:46
It reminds me of the love
7:49
that my mother and my grandmother and my aunts had
7:52
for the wonderful art of cooking.
7:56
The love among our family for each other.
8:01
In fact, the love my grandmother had
8:03
for her customers
8:04
that came into her restaurant at River Bend
8:07
when I was a small child.
8:12
Takes me back to those safe years, you know what I mean?
8:15
When your feet were under your mother's table
8:18
and your daddy's table
8:20
and your grandmother and granddaddy's table.
8:22
When you knew nothing could hurt you
8:24
because they were gonna protect you and keep you safe.
8:27
You didn't have a worry in this world,
8:29
except what was your next new swimsuit gon' look like?
8:45
I hope y'all are enjoying the show
8:47
and I want to hear from you.
8:49
Tell me what recipes or videos you'd like to see me
8:52
make by just leaving a short comment below.
8:55
Now, let's get back to the show, y'all.
9:00
[gentle music]
9:03
♪
9:10
- Well, everything with food is engrained in families.
9:16
Everybody's family heritage is tied through food of some kind.
9:20
Southern food just happens to encompass
9:22
the largest amount of space on the map.
9:30
- I like my cast iron pan to be full of chicken.
9:35
It's so hard to just cook two or three pieces, y'all.
9:38
You just can't get it regulated.
9:41
So, you know, don't worry about, there's only two of you.
9:46
Go 'head and fry that whole chicken
9:48
because I'm here to tell you, honey,
9:51
makes the best chicken salad you've ever seen.
9:54
Just pull off that crust, take that meat off the bone,
9:57
and that seasoning is already there.
10:00
Add some celery and onions and mayonnaise, boiled egg,
10:05
and you at the finish line.
10:13
- Here's something my mom has always said about cooking,
10:17
is that she loves the immediate gratification that she gets
10:21
from serving somebody a meal.
10:23
And I can 100% relate to that.
10:25
- Some people eat to live, some people live to eat.
10:30
And I have to say,
10:32
I really love cooking for those that live to eat.
10:36
[laughs]
10:39
I think mealtime
10:42
can be a very relaxing time when everybody's guard's down.
10:48
It's just a good place to be
10:52
because that should be one of the best times of the day,
10:56
is the times that you sit down
10:58
and share a meal with your family.
11:02
It just doesn't get any better than that.
11:07
Just doesn't get any better than that.
11:13
You know, most of your grandmothers and grandfathers
11:16
will have cast iron.
11:18
Well, whatever you do, don't throw it out.
11:20
Scrub it good with just hot water
11:23
and then grease it up and you can put it in a paper sack
11:27
and throw it in the closet
11:28
and let that cast iron drink back up that grease.
11:32
Don't use oil; use a solid shortening.
11:35
Or you can coat it with your solid shortening,
11:39
put it in the oven, just leave it in there,
11:42
and every time you're in your kitchen piddling,
11:44
turn your oven on
11:46
and just let that shortening bake into it.
11:49
And once again, you'll have a great seasoned pan.
11:54
And this round of chicken is 'bout to get ready, y'all.
12:00
- My mama's fried chicken is that perfect blend
12:04
of crunchy, yet succulent
12:07
and juicy and moist and delicious.
12:09
- And it's just hot and crunchy.
12:12
And it's my grandmother's chicken,
12:14
and it's my days in the trailer,
12:15
and it's the times with my father
12:18
eating a chicken leg in Albany.
12:20
- I mean, fried chicken is one of those things that...
12:24
it's such an important part of the Southern table.
12:28
It's really the main attraction.
12:30
The smell, the aroma,
12:31
just takes me back in time.
12:35
- And it's a flavor that's affected not only my family,
12:39
but a lot of people.
12:41
We've shared a lot of tears over fried chicken at our restaurant.
12:46
- See, that breast is already looking really, really good.
12:55
And this is something else that we do at the restaurant.
12:58
We take our tongs
13:02
and we'll go right down the side of--
13:06
each side of that bone
13:08
to open that chicken up
13:11
to make sure it gets good and done,
13:14
and you'll wanna do that
13:16
not on the skin side,
13:19
but on the skinless side.
13:23
See that? See what I'm doing?
13:26
The water from the chicken is coming out
13:29
and causing that fryer to just sizzle.
13:37
So we are almost there, kiddies.
13:44
I think it's done.
13:45
I'd say it's been in there a good 14 minutes.
13:52
And--but I'm just gon' let this cook,
13:54
and I kinda got a mess here, y'all,
13:56
so I'm gonna be cleaning this up.
14:02
I think that needs to try on my set of lips.
14:05
What do you think?
14:07
See if my lips fit that leg.
14:23
I so hope y'all are enjoying the show.
14:26
And if you do.
14:28
Be sure to click like, subscribe and
14:30
notification bell so you'll never miss a video.
14:34
And we'll be right back after the break.
14:39
[instrumental music]
14:42
- True Southern food is very hard to prepare.
14:50
And you don't find it everywhere.
14:56
Unless you do it at home.
14:57
And folks really don't have the time anymore,
14:59
'cause I think there's less hours in the day now
15:01
than there was 20 years ago.
15:07
- All I have to do if I'm having a bad day
15:11
is get in my car and go down to the restaurant.
15:14
- Morning! - Good morning!
15:16
Good morning!
15:18
[cheers and applause]
15:23
Those people,
15:25
those guests that come in the restaurant,
15:28
they are full of nothing but love and excitement
15:33
about finally getting
15:36
to the The Lady and Sons here in Savannah.
15:38
When I'm away from Savannah and talking about her,
15:41
the one word that keeps coming to my mind is magical.
15:44
There's something magical about this town.
15:47
- And the friendliness. - Yes.
15:50
Southern hospitality is still alive.
15:52
You tell the family back home that I sent love to 'em.
15:56
And y'all have a wonderful stay here.
15:58
- You wanna take me home, you can.
16:00
- Okay. - She won't mind.
16:01
[laughter]
16:07
- And they pour their love out to me so freely.
16:11
[indistinct chatter]
16:16
And if I've still got a problem
16:19
after greeting those people and chatting with 'em...
16:22
- This is too fun!
16:26
- Then there's something bad wrong with me.
16:40
- Well, back in Albany, I remember--it's so funny.
16:45
Mom would always fry--
16:47
she'd buy a fryer, 'cause there were--
16:49
gosh, by then, they were probably a dollar.
16:51
You'd get a whole fryer, Mom would break it down,
16:54
and she'd fry it in the pan.
17:00
- To me, my mom's fried chicken is the best in the world.
17:03
But you know what really is important to it,
17:05
is I mentioned that she would do it in the cast iron skillet.
17:08
And cast iron skillets are--
17:10
they're passed down over generations.
17:11
These things last forever.
17:13
And they become so well seasoned.
17:16
They take on this wonderful flavor over time.
17:20
That really is what makes fried chicken great.
17:23
If your mom or your grandmother
17:26
made fried chicken for you as a kid in a cast iron skillet,
17:29
then it had all that seasoning
17:31
from maybe 100 years past in it.
17:34
I think that it's just a...
17:38
it's one of those those things where,
17:39
"My mama makes better fried chicken than your mama."
17:41
"No, she doesn't.
17:42
My mama makes better fried chicken than yours."
17:46
But I think I have a legitimate claim.
17:50
- So you know, I told you a minute ago,
17:54
I think it's time to see if my lips fit this leg...
18:01
mmm.
18:06
It's so good.
18:11
Mmm.
18:14
So doggone good, y'all.
18:19
Mmm.
18:21
Brings back so many memories.
18:25
You know...
18:28
I remember that first Wednesday
18:31
in our first little restaurant
18:33
that was located in the Best Western.
18:36
The boys kept saying, "We need to do a buffet, Mama.
18:39
We need to do a buffet."
18:41
So I said, "Okay, we'll try.
18:43
We'll do hump day buffet on Wednesdays."
18:47
We didn't have enough seats.
18:49
[chuckles]
18:50
There were so many folks there.
18:53
And they were there for this.
18:58
The one way...
19:01
that I knew that I could show my family I loved 'em
19:05
was to fry them some chicken.
19:08
- And my mom would just make it...
19:11
so good.
19:14
You know, I never knew, growing up,
19:17
when it came time to eat
19:18
that we didn't have a lot of money.
19:21
There might have been other times,
19:22
but not when it was time to sit down at the table.
19:25
We were always rich when we sat down to eat.
19:30
- And all these years later,
19:34
it still reminds me...
19:38
of the way I showed my love for 'em.
19:40
Might not buy 'em the newest toy,
19:43
but I could fry them some chicken.
19:47
Mmm.
19:49
Yum, yum, yum.
19:54
I need a piece of white bread and some hot sauce.
19:58
[chuckles]
20:02
Well, that's it, y'all.
20:05
It's been a wonderful fun day to be in my kitchen
20:09
with my friends.
20:12
I thank y'all so much for staying with me
20:16
and hanging in there with me
20:18
while I got caught up on some cooking,
20:21
and I hope y'all have a wonderful day.
20:24
And, you know, I always send you love and best dishes.
20:27
Till we meet again!
20:29
♪
20:37
Hey, y'all, it's Paula Deen.
20:39
Now, if you enjoyed this video, be sure to like it
20:43
and click the subscribe button as well as the notification
20:47
and bail to be alerted when I post a video.
20:50
Love and Best Dishes Y'all.
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