Chicken Fried Chicken with Cream Gravy

Ingredients

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 lb)
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 4 cups vegetable oil, for frying
• 1/4 cup pan drippings and oil, for the gravy
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, for the gravy
• 2 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper, for the gravy
• Kosher salt to taste

Before you cook

• Butterfly each chicken breast and pound the halves to an even quarter inch thick between sheets of plastic wrap.
• Whisk the buttermilk, eggs and hot sauce together in a shallow dish.
• Whisk the 2 cups of flour with the salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder and cayenne in a second shallow dish.
• Set a wire rack over a baking sheet.

Steps

1. Dip a pounded cutlet in the seasoned flour, then in the buttermilk mixture, then back into the flour, pressing hard so the coating clings in shaggy patches.
2. Set the coated cutlet on the wire rack and repeat with the rest, then let them rest for 10 minutes so the crust sets.
3. Pour the oil into a large cast iron skillet to a depth of about three quarters of an inch and heat it to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
4. Fry two cutlets at a time for 3 to 4 minutes per side, until the crust is deep golden and the chicken reads 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
5. Drain the fried cutlets on a clean wire rack and salt them right away.
6. Carefully pour off all but a quarter cup of the fat, keeping the browned crumbs in the skillet.
7. Whisk the quarter cup of flour into the hot fat and cook for 2 minutes over medium heat, until it turns light tan.
8. Pour in the milk in a slow stream while whisking hard to keep the gravy smooth.
9. Simmer the gravy for 5 minutes, until it thickens, then season it heavily with the coarse black pepper and salt.
10. Ladle the cream gravy over the cutlets just before serving so the crust stays crisp.