Is the smell of a basket of hot, crispy, and zesty fried chicken still haunting you from yesterday? Remains of a good gastronomic adventure a day ago are now sitting on your fridge. How do you deal with it? Whether it’s leftover takeout or homemade fried chicken, techniques on how to reheat fried chicken can be tricky. Others get to that point of frustration that they would eat cold fried chicken taken straight from the fridge. Unless you do it right, you will not get an equally good eating experience. Thousands have attempted and they get varying results but certainly, there are success stories. Reheating fried chicken is typically done using convection oven, air fryer, and microwave oven. We’ll show you the step-by-step procedure on how each technique is done.
How Is The Convection Oven Method Done?
For reheating any meal, the convection oven is the most popular. Not efficient if you only have a piece or two left but if you’re feeling extra driven for the day, why not? Learn from the following easy steps below on how to reheat fried chicken using the convection oven:
- Preheat the oven to 400 ֯F.
- Meanwhile, prepare a baking tray with a wire rack on top. The raised platform will prevent the chicken from becoming soggy as what usually happens when stacked directly on a foil-lined sheet.
- While preheating, pull out the leftover goodies from the fridge and line them up on top of the wire rack.
- Let the chicken reach room temperature. Typically, this will take around 20-30 minutes but it varies depending on the size. This technique allows for a quicker heating thus, making it less prone for the chicken to dry out when warmed.
- Once the oven is done preheating and the chicken is thawed, pop the tray in the oven.
- Cook for about 15 minutes. Some may take even longer especially for bigger cuts. From time to time, crack the oven door open and see if the skin looks hot and crispy. If you have a meat thermometer, check the internal temperature and if it reaches to 150 ֯F, you’ll know it’s ready.
Others may give a shot in wrapping the chicken with aluminium foil arguing that the high temperature on the oven drains all the juice out of the meat. But, this traps the moisture inside the foil resulting to a flat and soggy chicken. Unless you prefer this sort and nobody will judge you, forget about the foil.
How Is The Air Frying Method Done?
The air fryer provides an end result that is as superior as the oven’s product. However, this is not a common household equipment so some may have probably heard of this the first time. Health buffs and health-conscious household heads prefer air fryers to deep fryers because it uses absolutely no oil at all whilst providing practically the same mouth-watering taste. Anyway, here are the easy steps on how to reheat fried chicken using an air fryer:
- Same with the convection oven method, one of the first steps is to let the chicken out of the fridge to warm at room temperature.
- While waiting, preheat the air fryer to 375 ֯F,
- Once done thawing, place the leftover stuff on the basket making sure they are arranged in one layer only.
- Cook for 3-4 minutes. Flip the sides from time to time to allow even warming.
- Check for doneness by physically scanning the fried chicken. It is reheated well if you see that the skin appeared crispier.
The common mistake committed when reheating using the air fryer is putting too much meat pieces on the basket until there’s no space left. Try not to stack them up so you can get a perfectly crispy texture after the reheating process. Piling them up will not allow even penetration of heat on all parts of the chicken. Yes, it will test your patience especially if you are dealing with a handful but you will be thankful later when you see those reheated crispy golden fried chicken.
How Is The Microwave Oven Method Done?
The microwave oven method is not a famous go-to procedure for reheating fried products. Why? It leaches too much moisture out of the fried chicken. It’s practically hard to tell from the rubbery end result that it was a fried food in the first place. But nonetheless, many still do so because it’s the convenient option and if you do, we have some tips to somehow salvage your reheated fried chicken from being too bland and soggy.
- You may probably know it by now but let’s repeat it anyway. Let the leftover chicken sit at room temperature after getting it out of the fridge.
- Once done, microwave the chicken. For every 30-second interval, flip the chicken to heat all sides. This hack prevents the meat from getting exposed too long to heat whilst allowing even heating.
- You may need to heat longer if the cuts are bigger but watch over it carefully so it won’t get too soggy.
If luck is not on your side, the end result is either rubbery or mushy chicken. You can hardly achieve the same freshly hauled fried chicken that’s finger lickin’ good with this method but here are some helpful hacks that will provide your meal a quick fix:
- If the chicken comes out too soggy, try pan-searing them on an oil-line skillet until slightly charred and perfectly crisped.
- Alternatively, try popping them on an oven toaster to get a crispier outside texture. In fact, this can be a standalone method – and skip the microwave perhaps? – and there’s a higher probability of even giving a more satisfying experience.
- Pair it up with a delectable sauce or a savoury side dish.
So, is it possible to reheat fried chicken? Absolutely, yes! Mastering the art thereof may take a couple of tries and probably a few failed attempts. You’re lucky if you get it right the first time. You may not be able to replicate the original but surely, it’s not impossible to reheat it. Pack a lot of patience and don’t be discouraged to experiment. Hope the reheating methods above help you enjoy your fried chicken on the second round!
