How to make Fried Chicken

We've eaten in a Gary Rhodes restaurant, and we'll be honest, fried chicken wasn't on the menu. That doesn't matter, though, because the culinary genius has a Caribbean step-dad who knows exactly how to make the good stuff. Observe...

8 chicken breasts, skinned and halved (16 pieces in total) and 14 chicken thighs, skinned.

Marinade:

3 large onions, thinly sliced

100g (4oz) fresh ginger, coarsely grated

6 tomatoes, roughly chopped (including seeds)

4 garlic cloves, sliced

Juice of 2 lemons

Generous sprig or two of fresh thyme

1 heaped tsp of dried mixed herbs

1 level tsp dried rosemary

1 heaped tsp cayenne pepper

1 heaped tsp paprika

1 heaped tsp salt

Generous twist of black pepper

2 x ½ sticks of cinnamon

Flour for dusting the chicken: For every 225g (8oz) of plain flour, add ½ teaspoon of cayenne, ½ teaspoon of paprika and ½ teaspoon of dried ginger

Method: Simply mix all of the marinade ingredients together before adding the chicken. Leave to marinade for a minimum 24-48 hours, stirring occasionally. Remove marinade from chicken pieces and discard. Flour (see note above), egg and crumb each of the chicken pieces, keeping the breasts separate from the thighs. Deep fry the thighs to a golden brown before finishing through the oven until tender. The breasts can be fried over a medium heat until golden and tender, finishing through the oven for a few minutes, if needed.

Gary Rhodes, for the first time , will be cooking with his step-father to recreate his family recipe, ‘Grandpa’s Fried Chicken’ on Sunday 19th June at the Taste of Jamaica Theatre at this year’s Taste of London restaurant festival