People have been brining chicken in buttermilk since forever, often as the first step in a dredged and fried chicken situation. But we have chef and cookbook author Samin Nosrat to credit for the idea of roasting poultry straight out of a buttermilk bath, which not only imparts delicious tangy flavor, but also helps the skin achieve a walnut-colored hue when roasted at high heat.
Recipe information
Yield
4-6 servings
Ingredients
4
1
1
2
1
½
3
6
Preparation
Step 1
Arrange chicken legs in a large baking dish or pie plate and season with 1 Tbsp. salt and a very generous amount of pepper, turning to get both sides. Let sit 15 minutes.
Step 2
Finely grate lemon zest directly over chicken and turn to coat; set lemon aside for making the dressing. Add 1½ cups buttermilk and 1 Tbsp. sesame oil and turn again to coat. Cover and chill at least 3 hours and up to 12 hours, turning occasionally if possible (don’t get up in the middle of the night or anything).
Step 3
Meanwhile, whisk yogurt, remaining ½ cup buttermilk, and remaining 1 tsp. sesame oil in a small bowl to combine. Cut reserved lemon in half and squeeze in the juice (you should get about 2 Tbsp.). Season with salt and pepper and a few dashes of hot sauce and whisk again to combine. Cover dressing and chill while the chicken marinates.
Step 4
Preheat oven to 475°. Let chicken sit out at room temperature while the oven comes up to temperature. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil (to make cleanup easier) and set a wire rack inside. Remove chicken from marinade, letting excess drip off, and place, skin side up, on prepared rack; discard marinade. Roast chicken until skin is a deep brown and crisp and a thermometer inserted to thickest part of thigh registers 165°, 25–30 minutes.
Step 5
Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add leeks and toss to coat. Season with salt and cook, tossing occasionally, until dark brown around the edges but not completely softened, 6–8 minutes. If the pan looks dry or scorched toward the end of cooking, add a splash of water to get things moving again.
Step 6
Stir half of chives into dressing, then spread dressing onto a platter or 4 plates. Spoon leek mixture over and top with chicken. Scatter remaining chives over.
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Reviews (34)
Back to TopI love this recipe however, for some reason I have found that the full leg quarter is just too...gory. I have made this at least 5 times (EVERYTHING is great - the brining, the crispy skin, leeks, sauce, all of it) but each and every time, the chicken bleeds on the plate, and it's kind of a challenge to get the meat off the leg without some serious, lets us say, maneuvering. That sounds gross I know - and it is. I'm not sure if this is a butchering problem but considering it's happened pretty much every time AND I've gotten the chicken from different stores, I just have to think that a leg quarter is kind of a strange cut or something...and I truly do cook it long enough. I'm making this tonight with just thighs and I bet it will be amazing. TRY this recipe for incredible skin-on chicken; just maybe start with bone-in breast or thighs.
Brooke R
Santa Cruz, CA
10/18/2023
Salty (not too much), buttery notes from buttermilk, freshness from lemon zest, hearty and smoky flavors from roasted sesame oil. Crispy golden brown skin. Unexpected and delicious! It makes me enjoy eating “industrial” chicken (which have horrible taste in my mouth). I’ve done the recipe as written, but I’ve bake the chicken 1 hour and 10 minutes at 350o F. Perfect with leeks. No sauce needed!
Alice D.
Quebec, CA
11/14/2022
I've been cooking with buttermilk soaked chicken for quite some time, I love it. as with one comment if I am out of buttermilk (I freeze in zip lock bags) I too add milk and vinegar, immediately turns i into buttermilk. I love it. This is the reason I tried this recipe. I found it wonderful.
Ramona Wood
Seattle , Wa
8/24/2021
Chicken was great, extremely flavorful and super juicy. I just did them in a preheated cast iron skillet (for bottom browning) and had no issues with smoking. Per the other comments about the dressing lacking flavor, I made a more traditional ranch dressing (added kewpie mayo, onion powder, and fresh dill), with the extra I dressed some cabbage/carrots with it for a slaw. Threw extra dill all over everything at the end as well.
Sarah
Berkeley, CA
5/12/2021
Pretty good, chicken was well flavored. I marinated overnight. Way too many leeks, I'd use half the amount.
brushjl
solon, oh
1/13/2021
Made this tonight after reading the recipe and all the comments. While I liked the recipe, I personally found it a bit tricky, and so I thought I would leave some tips for posterity. First of all, since this is a fairly simple recipe with few ingredients, it benefits from liberal salt and pepper at every step (brine, leeks, sauce, and also when plating). Like, more than you would think. I found just a few dashes of hot sauce insufficient to season the sauce; I think 1-1.5 tablespoons is better. For reference, I was using Cholula. I had leftover toasted walnuts and marjoram sprigs and added them to the brine, but I don't think they added anything at all, so skip that if you happen to be in the same situation. In addition to chives, I think the recipe benefits from the added complexity of an additional tender herb (e.g. marjoram) for both the sauce and as a garnish. When baking the chicken, I added water beneath as other reviewers suggested. Although my chicken was fully cooked after the indicated time, I believe the water produced steam which inhibited the browning. I placed the chicken beneath the broiler for a few minutes after, and it ended up nicely caramelized without overcooking. Finally, I'm not used to cooking with leeks, but the ones I got from Whole Foods were pretty large (white and pale green portion almost 1 foot long). I used only 5 of these, and still found the amount of leeks to be too much. So use fewer if you also get ones this big. Oh, and I appreciated a few additional dashes of hot sauce on the leeks when plating. Good luck!
Anonymous
San Francisco
9/22/2020
Looks promising but lacks flavor. It's basically roast chicken with ranch dressing. The chicken came out fine but not as juicy as the marinade would suggest. I'd rather cook it a little longer at a lower temperature. And, the leeks need something, maybe a splash of vinegar and/or some added nuts.
SrAsparagus
Oakland, CA
7/12/2020