Fried chicken with cheesy polenta waffles, Thomas Keller's version

Combine the water, halved lemons, halved garlic head, peppercorns, honey, kosher salt, parsley, thyme and bay leaves, bring to a boil for one minute, remove from the heat to cool, then chill.

Halve the brine if brining one bird rather than two, pour it over the chicken, cover and chill no more than 12 hours or the chicken will be too salty.

Take the chicken out, rinse it under cold water to remove clinging herbs and pat it dry.

Rest on a rack at room temperature for an hour and a half until it comes to room temperature.

Cook the polenta in the water in a saucepan around five minutes so there is no grit.

Combine the cake flour, baking powder, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper and a pinch of cayenne.

Stir the milk into the polenta briefly, then add that to the dry mix.

Add the egg, the melted butter and the grated white cheddar; add more flour if the batter is runny.

Cook the waffle five to eight minutes until golden brown on top, and hold it in a 200 degree Fahrenheit oven to stay crisp and warm.

Mix the all purpose flour with garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, cayenne, salt and black pepper and divide it between two bowls.

Season the buttermilk with salt and pepper in a third bowl.

Set up flour, buttermilk, flour, then a parchment-lined baking sheet, beside a Dutch oven heating canola oil to 320 degrees Fahrenheit.

Coat each piece in flour and pat off the excess, dip in the buttermilk and let the excess drip back, then coat in the second bowl of flour, keeping one hand for flour and one for buttermilk.

Rotate the chicken for the first few minutes, then fry 11 to 12 minutes holding 320 until golden brown, uber crisp and cooked through.

Break the waffle into triangles, butter it generously into every pocket, add a couple of pieces of chicken and pour maple syrup on the waffle.