Buttermilk fried chicken

Break down the chicken: wing tips off, wings de-jointed, thigh and leg sections off and split, backbone snapped and the breast cut into four pieces with a cleaver.

Toss the pieces in a bowl with black pepper, salt, paprika, dried herbs, white pepper and cayenne.

Top with buttermilk and let it sit six hours; four works and overnight is fine.

Mix the seasoned flour from flour, salt, paprika, cayenne, garlic powder, white pepper and onion powder.

Dredge the marinated pieces in the seasoned flour until nicely coated, shake off the excess and set them on a plate.

Heat about two and a half quarts of oil in an eight quart Dutch oven to 350F and fry all eight pieces at once for about 10 minutes to develop a crust.

Move the pieces around in case any are stuck together and fry another 10 to 15 minutes, 20 to 25 minutes in total, until cooked through.

Lift them out with a spider onto a rack set over paper towels on a sheet pan, and wait about 10 minutes before biting in.