Chicken Cracklings

Thigh and breast skin yield the largest pieces and lay nice and flat. The drumstick skin is small and thicker so it takes a couple extra minutes to cook. When making chicken skin cracklings season them conservatively. During the cooking process, the skins will shrink resulting in more condensed flavor. The best seasoning for chicken cracklings is...whatever flavors YOU like. Spices that work well include salt, pepper, garlic salt, cayenne pepper, thyme, lemon pepper, curry powder, and rosemary.

When I make chicken wings, I use baking powder on the wings to raise the pH level so the protein breaks down more efficiently resulting in a brown crispy skin, so I used it on the cracklings too.

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 450*F. Dry the skins using a paper towel and place them in a bowl. You can also open the package and place the skins in the refrigerator for an hour to dry them out. The drier the skins, the crispier they will be.

Step 2: Mix all of the spices and sprinkle over the chicken skins. Toss to coat.

Step 3: Place the chicken skins flat on a baking pan with sides (I made the mistake of making the cracklings in the oven on a baking sheet and chicken grease spilled all over the bottom of the oven creating lots of smoke and setting off the smoke detector.)

Step 4: Cook in an oven heated to 450*F for 12-15 minutes or cook in the air fryer at 450*F for 8-10 minutes.

Step 5: Lay cooked cracklings on a paper towel after cooking to soak up any additional grease.

Step 6: Serve hot and enjoy.

Recipe by Victoria Cook:

Victoria is a home cook turned host and cook for 100+ episodes of a private cooking show for wellness practitioners and their patients. As a lover of ethnic cuisines, she uses a variety of spices and fresh ingredients to make flavorful healthy meals for her husband and son. She loves to challenge herself with new recipes and if she can make them in an electric pressure cooker, she’s even happier.