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Who needs takeout fried chicken when you can whip up this incredible sourdough fried chicken at home? You’ll use your sourdough starter or discard to marinate boneless chicken, then toss it with my savory spice blend. Fried to a crisp golden-brown, this sourdough fried chicken is so good I guarantee it’ll disappear from your dinner table within minutes!
Why You’ll Love This Sourdough Fried Chicken!
Perfect Family Dinner – My kids absolutely love these crispy fried chicken tenders, and let’s be honest, so do the adults. I know this looks like a lot of spices, but it comes together fast and makes an incredible spice blend that my kids think is even better than the drive-thru version! Plus I’m obsessed with finding new ways of creating sourdough dinner ideas!
Surprisingly Simple – You only need to let the chicken marinate for 30 minutes to an hour, and then do a quick dredge in the spiced flour mixture before frying.
Great Way To Use Up Discard – Amazingly, sourdough discard is acidic and tenderizes the chicken in a similar way to buttermilk! Just a short amount of time in the discard batter adds tons of flavor to your sourdough fried chicken.
Ingredients
- Boneless Chicken – I like buying already cut chicken tenders whenever possible as it just saves so much time and effort. But if you can’t find any, buy boneless breasts and slice them into tenders yourself.
- Sourdough Starter or Discard – Either one will work in this recipe, however unfed starter is usually better as it’s a little more acidic than fed, bubbly sourdough starter.
- Egg – A medium or large egg will work.
- Salt
- All-purpose Flour and Cornstarch – I’ve found 3 parts AP flour to 1 part cornstarch gives you a perfect crispy coating.
- Black pepper
- Onion and garlic powder or granules – These give a fantastic flavor to the spice mix.
- Paprika – I use mild paprika, but you can use whatever kind you like.
- Mustard Powder – This is sometimes called ground mustard or dry mustard.
- Ground Ginger – Just a teaspoon adds tons of flavor (trust me, I just don’t tell the kids).
- Dried Oregano – I love a pinch of oregano, but thyme is a good option as well.
- Canola or Vegetable Oil – You want a neutral oil here that’s good for frying. These options are budget friendly as you need a decent amount. You could also use avocado oil if you’d like.
How To Make Sourdough Fried Chicken
Start by mixing together the seasonings. Then in a separate bowl, whisk the sourdough discard, egg and salt, then stir through some of the seasoning mix. Add the chicken and toss until well coated. Let the chicken marinate for at least 30 minutes to tenderize and absorb all that flavor.
While the chicken is marinating, prepare the dredge by combining the remaining seasoning mix with the flour and cornstarch. Once the chicken has finished brining, coat each piece thoroughly in the seasoned flour mixture and place onto a tray ready for frying.
Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pot until it reaches 350-375°F (175-180°C). Working in batches, carefully fry the chicken until golden brown and cooked through, turning as needed to ensure even browning.
Kate’s Pro Tip
Frying Tips
Keep in mind that the temperature of the oil will drop when you add the chicken, so you may want to give the oil a few minutes to get back up to temperature after each batch.
Larger pieces of chicken may take longer to cook, so keep an eye out for different sized pieces to make sure everything is fully cooked.
Transfer the cooked chicken to a paper towel-lined plate before moving it to a wire rack to stay crisp. Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauces.
Repeat until all the chicken is cooked.
Kate’s Pro Tip
Seasoning Tip
Don’t forget to sprinkle the chicken with salt when it comes out of the oil, this really takes your sourdough fried chicken to the next level!
What To Eat With Sourdough Fried Chicken
- My family loves eating this sourdough fried chicken with my small batch homemade ketchup and ranch dressing!
- This sourdough fried chicken is fantastic with homemade sourdough biscuits or sourdough discard waffles! And don’t forget the sourdough gravy!
- My kids also love a chicken wrap, which we make with these sourdough tortillas and crisp lettuce.
How To Store + Freeze
These chicken tenders disappear fast in my house, but you can store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a few days.
Reheat them by cooking in a 350ºF/180ºC oven or air fryer until piping hot. I wouldn’t recommend freezing them because the delicious crispy crust won’t last.
Frequently Asked Questions
I do recommend a thermometer, but you can also drop a small piece of bread into the oil. If it takes 40 seconds to brown, your oil is about at the right temperature. You can also dip the end of a wooden spoon or chopstick in the oil. If the oil starts sizzling and bubbling around the stick, the oil is hot enough, but if the oil starts smoking, it’s too hot.
Again, a thermometer is super useful here, but otherwise I break open the thickest piece of chicken and make sure it’s completely white and cooked through.
You can, although I’ll be honest that I prefer the texture of frying in oil! You can place the battered chicken into the basket of your air fryer with room to spare around each one. Brush or lightly spray the chicken pieces with oil and cook at 400F/200C for 12 minutes, flipping halfway through.
Sourdough Fried Chicken
Equipment
- Dutch Oven (or wide deep pot for frying)
- Metal Tongs (or slotted spoon)
- Cooking Thermometer
- Wire Rack and Tray
Ingredients
- 30 g Salt, (divided) 4 teaspoons
- 4 g Black Pepper, 2 teaspoons
- 6 g Garlic Powder, 2 teaspoons
- 5 g Paprika, 2 teaspoons
- 3 g Onion Powder, 1 teaspoon
- 2 g Mustard Powder, 1 teaspoon
- 2 g Ground Ginger, 1 teaspoon
- 1 g Dried Oregano, 1 teaspoon
- 100 g Sourdough Starter, or discard
- 1 Egg
- 800 g Chicken Tenders, or sliced boneless chicken breasts
- 120 g All-purpose Flour
- 40 g Cornstarch
Instructions
- Make the seasoning mix by combining 2 teaspoons of salt along with the pepper, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder, mustard powder, ground ginger, and oregano in a small bowl.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sourdough discard, egg, and the remaining 2 teaspoons salt. Add 1 tablespoon of the seasoning mix and whisk until well combined. Add in the chicken, stir until all the pieces are coated, and let brine at room temperature for about 30 minutes or up to an hour.
- While the chicken is marinating, add the flour and cornstarch to the seasoning mix and whisk to combine. This is the dredge you will be using to coat the chicken before frying. Transfer the mix to a wide, shallow container, which will make it easy to coat the chicken.
- When the chicken is done brining, use tongs to lift each tender and transfer to the container with the dredge mix. Use tongs to flip the tender on each side to coat it all sides over with the flour and spices. Place each coated tender on a plate or tray and repeat until all the chicken is well-coated.
- Add the oil to a wide, stable pot such as a Dutch oven until the oil is about 5 cm (2 inches) deep. Heat the oil over medium-high heat to 350 to 375℉/175 to 180℃ (I recommend having a thermometer for this step, it just makes frying so much easier).
- Once the oil is hot, add just enough chicken to the pan so the pieces aren’t overcrowded. Let the chicken fry for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the bottom of the chicken is golden-brown, then use metal tongs to carefully flip the pieces to cook for another 2 minutes or so. The chicken should be well-browned all over and fully cooked in the largest sections. If you have a thermometer, you’re looking for an internal temperature of over 165 degrees.
- Carefully remove the chicken and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and lightly sprinkle with salt. Once the plate is full, transfer the chicken to a wire rack so it stays crispy on all sides and replace with a new paper towel. Repeat until all the chicken is cooked and serve with your favorite dipping sauce – I love both ketchup and ranch!
Notes
- Keep in mind that the temperature of the oil will drop when you add the chicken, so you may want to give the oil a few minutes to get back up to temperature after each batch.
- Larger pieces of chicken may take longer to cook, so keep an eye out for different sized pieces to make sure everything is fully cooked.
- Don’t forget to sprinkle the chicken with salt when it comes out of the oil, this really takes your sourdough fried chicken to the next level!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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