Kentucky Fried Chicken

Name: Kentucky Fried Chicken
Prep time: 13 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 38 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: United States
Ingredients: 1 whole Chicken; 2 quarts neutral frying Oil; 1 Egg White; 1 1/2 cups Flour; 1 tablespoon Brown Sugar; 1 tablespoon Salt; 1 tablespoon paprika; 2 teaspoons onion salt; 1 teaspoon chili powder; 1 teaspoon black pepper; 1/2 teaspoon celery salt; 1/2 teaspoon sage; 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder; 1/2 teaspoon allspice; 1/2 teaspoon oregano; 1/2 teaspoon basil; 1/2 teaspoon marjoram

By The Spice & Simmer Kitchen · Published May 3, 2026

A one-pot Chicken recipe with United States flavors, built for busy weeknights when you want real food without a sink full of dishes. Comes together in roughly 59 minutes, serves about 4, and uses ingredients you can find at any normal grocery store. The technique is simple: build a base in your pot, layer in the main ingredients, simmer until everything has had time to talk to each other, and serve straight from the pan. If you're cooking for picky eaters, this one tends to land — the flavors are recognizable, the texture is comforting, and there's nothing weird hiding in the ingredient list. Perfect for the kind of evening where you want dinner on the table by 7pm and the kitchen empty by 7:30.

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings · 38 min total

1 whole Chicken
2 quarts neutral frying Oil
1 Egg White
1 1/2 cups Flour
1 tablespoon Brown Sugar
1 tablespoon Salt
1 tablespoon Paprika
2 teaspoons Onion Salt
1 teaspoon Chili Powder
1 teaspoon Black Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Celery Salt
1/2 teaspoon Sage
1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/2 teaspoon Allspice
1/2 teaspoon Oregano
1/2 teaspoon Basil
1/2 teaspoon Marjoram

Step-by-step instructions

Preheat fryer to 350°F. Thoroughly mix together all the spice mix ingredients.
Combine spice mix with flour, brown sugar and salt.
Dip chicken pieces in egg white to lightly coat them, then transfer to flour mixture. Turn a few times and make sure the flour mix is really stuck to the chicken. Repeat with all the chicken pieces.
Let chicken pieces rest for 5 minutes so crust has a chance to dry a bit.
Fry chicken in batches. Breasts and wings should take 12-14 minutes, and legs and thighs will need a few more minutes. Chicken pieces are done when a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part reads 165°F.
Let chicken drain on a few paper towels when it comes out of the fryer. Serve hot.

Why this works on a weeknight

Kentucky Fried Chicken lands at about 38 minutes total — a little longer than our 30-minute target, but most of that time is hands-off simmering, which is why it earned a spot in our Skillet & One-Pan collection. The technique is forgiving, the ingredient list is grocery-store standard, and the active cooking time is short enough that you can answer a text message in the middle without ruining dinner.

Cleanup notes

This is a single-pan recipe, so the cleanup is exactly one pan, one cutting board, and one knife. While the dish rests, fill the pan with hot soapy water — by the time you are done eating, the residue lifts off with a single pass of a sponge. Skip the steel wool on cast iron; a stiff brush and warm water are all you need to keep the seasoning intact.

Make-ahead and leftovers

Leftovers keep covered in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat in a dry pan over medium-low with a splash of water or stock to loosen the sauce. Kentucky Fried Chicken actually improves overnight as the flavors keep talking to each other, so doubling the recipe and packing tomorrow's lunch is a high-leverage weeknight move.

Filed under 🥘 Skillet & One-Pan Chicken United States Meat Spicy