Buttermilk Fried Chicken with Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans
Buttermilk marinated fried chicken with mashed potatoes and homemade gravy with fresh green beans.
This recipe for buttermilk fried chicken with mashed potatoes and green beans is a classic comfort food meal, featuring crispy, juicy chicken marinated in buttermilk and coated with a spiced flour mix. The creamy mashed potatoes are enhanced with butter, cream cheese, and garlic, while tender green beans are seasoned with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Topped with a rich brown gravy infused with Worcestershire sauce, this dish offers a satisfying blend of flavors and textures, perfect for a hearty, comforting dinner.
Servings
4
Prep Time
30 minutes + 4 hours marinating
Cook Time
90 minutes
Total Time
6 hours
Ingredients
For the Chicken
3-4 pounds chicken legs and thighs
3 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons hot pepper sauce
3 tablespoons kosher salt, divided
4 teaspoons ground black pepper, divided
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons onion powder, divided
1.5 teaspoons garlic powder, divided
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Peanut or vegetable oil for frying
For the Mashed Potatoes
3 medium red potatoes
3 medium Yukon gold potatoes
4 tablespoons salted butter, divided
2 tablespoons whole milk
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons cream cheese, room temperature
2 cloves garlic, minced
For the Brown Gravy
2 cups chicken and beef broth (use boiling water with 1 tsp each chicken and beef Better than Bouillon)
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground thyme
1/4 cup cold water
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
For the Green Beans
Fresh green beans, two handfuls, trimmed
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
Marinate the Chicken
In a large bowl, whisk buttermilk, hot pepper sauce, 1 tbsp kosher salt, and 2 tsp black pepper. Add chicken and coat well. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.
Prepare the Coating
In a separate bowl, mix flour, 2 tsp kosher salt, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and cayenne. Set aside.
Make the Mashed Potatoes
Peel and dice potatoes. Boil in salted water until fork-tender. In a saucepan, warm butter, milk, cream, and garlic. Drain potatoes, return to pot, and mash with warmed mixture and cream cheese until smooth. Cover to keep warm.
Make the Gravy
Melt butter in a saucepan. Whisk in flour to make a roux, then slowly whisk in beef or chicken broth until smooth. Simmer until thickened. Keep warm.
Fry the Chicken
Remove chicken from marinade, letting excess drip off. Dredge in flour mixture and rest on a wire rack. Heat 1 inch of oil in a Dutch oven or skillet to 350°F. Fry chicken in batches until golden and crisp, 165°F inside. Drain on paper towels and keep warm in a 200°F oven.
Cook the Green Beans
In a skillet, melt butter. Add green beans and season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Sauté until tender.
Serve
Plate mashed potatoes with gravy, add fried chicken, and serve green beans on the side. Enjoy hot.
Combine the chicken with 3 cups buttermilk, 2 tablespoons hot sauce, 1 tablespoon kosher salt, and 2 teaspoons black pepper in a glass or plastic bowl. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours to overnight.
Mix together 2 cups flour, 2 teaspoons kosher salt, 2 teaspoons onion powder, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon ground paprika, and 1 teaspoon ground cayenne in a bowl for coating the chicken.
Prepare the marinated chicken with the flour coating mixture with a sheet pan wire rack.
Remove chicken from the buttermilk marinade and drip excess, then using a tongs coat each piece in the flour mixture and place on a wired sheet pan rack to rest while preparing the potatoes.
Rest the coated chicken on the wire rack while preparing the potatoes, gravy, and frying oil.
Peel and large dice the potatoes. Prepare a large saucepan with salted water to boil the potatoes.
In a separate small saucepan, add 2 tablespoons butter with 2 tablespoons whole milk, 2 tablespoons heavy cream, and 2 minced garlic cloves and set aside. Also set aside 2 tablespoons cream cheese to warm to room temp to stir in mashed potatoes at the end.
Prepare the brown gravy in another saucepan by first making the chicken/beef broth using Better than Bouillon puree. Then stir in 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon ground thyme.
Bring to a light boil and stir in the water and corn starch slurry to thicken.
Add 1 tablespoon unsalted butter to melt and set aside.
Heat about an inch of oil in a Dutch oven with a candy thermometer to reach 350 degrees.
Boil the potatoes and fry the chicken in a couple rounds about 10-15 minutes maintaining at least 320 degrees while frying and until internal temp with a probe thermometer reaches 165 degrees. Meanwhile, heat oven to 200 degrees to keep round 1 warm while frying round 2.
Heat the butter and milk mixture until just almost a boil while potatoes are boiling. Once fork tender, strain in a colander and return to pan on low heat to evaporate remaining water. Add the butter and milk mix to mash the potatoes. Stir in the cream cheese. Cover and set aside the potatoes. Sauté the green beans with butter, salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder until tender.
Let the chicken rest about 5 minutes and dish up!
