The 5 Best NYC Fried Chickens Out Of The 27 I've Had So Far

I rarely trust lists that people make. You're telling me, these 5 plates of salad is the BEST in New York City and I should go eat them. Have you tried every plate of salad from everywhere? I doubt it. My goal is to find my favorite fried chickens and to do that, I've been trying to eat all of them in New York City. Yes, all of them. This is a long term research project that started many years ago but didn't take it seriously till last May. My economics professor once said that if you want the facts, the truth, don't rely on the news. Go out and find out for yourself. Food is subjective. Many people have said The Redhead does a great fried chicken but when I had it, I thought it lacked seasoning and that it was boring.

The rules are simple, no chains, no wings places, no chicken tenders, no chicken nuggets. I have a whole other list for fried chicken sandwiches because those are darn tasty too. There are some places that serve boneless fried chicken which my friend doesn't consider to be "fried chicken." What do y'all think? Talde in Park Slope does a good one but it's boneless!

Anyways...

So to be fair and honest, I'm listing out 5 of the BEST fried chickens in New York City from the 27 I've had so far.

In no particular order, they are... 1. Birds & Bubbles (picture above) I'm gonna say it, Sarah Simmons is the queen of fried chicken. I couldn't get enough of her fried chicken when she was only serving it at City Grit. I was so excited when she told me she was opening a fried chicken restaurant. The fried chicken is just really really good. Birds & Bubbles - 100B Forsyth St. Manhattan

2. Charles Country Pan Fried Chicken He is like the godfather of fried chicken. If you read reviews, they're pretty mixed but I love it. My friends and I go right when the door opens, when the food is hot and fresh. Also, what beats an all-you-can-eat fried chicken brunch for under $20?! Good thing for me, Charles Country Pan Fried Chicken is an hour away by train or else I go there once a week. Charles Country Pan Fried Chicken - 2839-2841 Frederick Douglass Blvd at 151st St. Manhattan

3. The Breslin Holy fuckin fried chicken. This whole meal was intense. It's expensive (with drinks) but it was so worth it. The chicken, the sauces, champ, salad, BISCUITS!, desserts. Probably my favorite meal of 2013. The Breslin - 16 W. 29th St. Manhattan

4. Peaches HotHouse Get it hot and don't look back. The plain fried chicken is good but man...get the hot. Spices on the crust and on the meat. Peaches HotHouse - 415 Tompkins Ave. Brooklyn

5. Wilma Jean I was so happy when I shook Rob Newton's (chef and owner) hand at Taste Talks. I thanked him for opening Wilma Jean. Seersucker was good but all I really wanted was just the fried chicken. Wilma Jean - 345 Smith St. Brooklyn

----If my list was top 11, these would be in it----The Commodore I love their fried chicken because they only serve the thigh (best part!) plus honey butter. Oh and they have tiki drinks and probably have one of the great nachos of NYC. The Commodore - 366 Metropolitan Ave at Havemeyer St. Brooklyn

Pies 'n' Thighs I see Pies 'n' Thighs as one of the pioneers in NYC fried chicken. There will always be a place in my heart for their fried chicken but lately I've been going for only their chicken biscuits. Flaky biscuits, fried chicken, and hot sauce/honey. *drooooooooooooooooool....... Pies 'n' Thighs - 166 S. 4th St. at Driggs Brooklyn

Bobwhite Lunch and Supper Counter I feel bad. I've been neglecting Bobwhite. I'm just rarely in East Village and that's a sad thing because they fry up some really nice chicken. Bobwhite Lunch and Supper Counter - 94 Avenue C Manhattan

Sweet Chick I came here for my birthday once and quickly fell in love. The chicken is great here and my vegetarian friend approves their vegetarian fried chicken. Everybody wins! Sweet Chick - 164 Bedford Ave. Brooklyn & 178 Ludlow St. Manhattan

The Dutch Because the pieces of fried chicken (tasty) and biscuits are served on a silver platter. Wow. I don't mind trekking out to Soho on the weekend for this. The Dutch - 131 Sullivan St. Manhattan

Thistle Hill Tavern They do a great job with the fried chicken. Coated in rice flour, it's really crispy and the meat is juicy. A lovely neighborhoody restaurant. Thistle Hill Tavern - 441 7th Ave. Brooklyn

----These are good but wouldn't necessarily go out of my way for them----The Brooklyn Star Red Rooster Harlem (Need a repeat visit) Walter Foods & Walter's Momofuku Noodle Bar Jimmy's Diner Amy Ruth's (Need a repeat visit) Sugar Freak (Moving to Brooklyn and need a repeat visit) Little Neck Sidecar (Need a repeat visit) ----I thought these were meh----Blue Ribbon Fried Chicken The Redhead (Need a repeat visit) BFC/Buttermilk Channel (Not sure what happened to Buttermilk Channel but the chicken I had was THE worst fried chicken ever. Check out their Smorgasburg outpost, it's so much better.) The Cardinal (Need a repeat visit) Hill Country Chicken Kiwiana (Need a repeat visit) Clover Club

That's about it. I have 40 more places to go in New York City and another dozen of places in Seattle, Los Angeles, and Philly. Oh boy!

Obviously, don't take my word for it. Go out and eat. Find your own favorite fried chicken.

Let me know in the comments, where I should eat next. Thanks!

A Galette

Honestly I have never heard of galette before until few months ago when Marian Bull brought one to a picnic at Prospect Park. A ga..what?

And ever since then, it's all I see and hear and read about in the digital space. It's like one of those things where you go and buy a green car and suddenly, it's all you see on the road, green cars.

I've been meaning to make one but well you know, had to wait till it was cooler to turn on the oven.

Instead of doing a sweet one, I did a savory galette with eggs cause I love eggs.

This is a no-brainer. The only tough part is making the dough but now that I have made the 4 & 20 Blackbirds pie crust dough few times, it's getting easier and quicker. (You can find their all butter pie crust recipe on Food52 or go buy their book!)

The rest of this is really up to you. I went to the farmers market and didn't really decide until I saw what was available. I got couple red onions and some watermelon radishes because I have never seen them at the market.

-------------------------------------------- 1 pie crust dough 1 red onion 1 watermelon radish (or 2 if they're on the small side) 3 eggs Salt and pepper

1. Pre-heat a 400 degree oven 2. Thinly sliced the red onion and radishes 3. Roll out the dough (It's alright if it's not a perfect circle) 4. Place a parchment paper on a baking sheet and move the dough onto it 5. Place the slices of onion on the dough, starting from the center and move outward (Leave about an inch or inch and a half of edge) 6. Crack 2 eggs on top of the onions 7. Place the slices of radishes between/around the eggs (Doesn't have to be perfect) 8. Season with salt and pepper 9. Fold the edges over the filling 10. Crack the 3rd egg, scramble it, and brush it on the dough 11. Jam the galette into the oven and bake for 30ish mins or till crust is golden brown

Few things I like to add for next time. Finish the galette with a nice drizzle of olive oil, grate some nice parmesan cheese over, and sprinkle some parsley onto it.

Behind-The-Scenes At Taste Talks 2014

Another year, another Taste Talks. I was asked to photograph the event again and got a chance to sit through some very cool demos and interesting panels. The fun part is always the chance to meet the chefs. Here's a photo recap of Taste Talks 2014.

Sunday In A Jar

So last time when I made pie crust cookies, I was left with the dilemma of having leftover pie crust. Obviously there were many things I could've used it for but I was craving something else. Inspired by my favorite Big Gay Ice Cream treat, the Mermaid (which has vanilla ice cream, key lime curd, homemade graham crumble, and whipped cream), I wanted to make a sundae. I thought of using the same pint of vanilla ice cream I used for my pie crust cookie ice cream sandwiches but nope, I had an even better idea.

The one thing I'm good at is making tiramisu. Especially after getting tips from the crew at Brucie in Brooklyn. It's the only thing I'm confident that it'll come out good every time. SO.....why not use the mascarpone cream in the sundae instead of regular old vanilla ice cream?

-- RECIPE

Please note: This recipe contains raw eggs. I used the ones I get from the farmers' market.

Leftover pie crust

Mascarpone Cream: 2 eggs separated 8oz mascarpone 7 tablespoons sugar 1 cup heavy cream

In a bowl, whisk 2 egg yolks and 6 tablespoons of sugar until you get to the ribbon stage. It should be smooth and pale yellow.

Add the mascarpone cheese into the egg/sugar mixture and incorporate completely.

In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites till stiff peaks. Gently fold the egg whites into the mascarpone mixture. This will lighten the mixture.

In another bowl, whisk heavy cream and 1 tablespoon of sugar till you get stiff peaks. Fold whipped cream into mascarpone mixture. The cream gives the mixture body.

To Assemble: Put your leftover pie crust in a ziplock bag or tea towel. Smash it up. It's fine if there are big pieces and small pieces.

In a bowl or a jar or a cup or a sundae glass, put in a layer of pie crust crumble then mascarpone cream then plum sauce and repeat.

And...EAT