Fried Chicken Restaurant Equipment: A Guide for Commercial Kitchens

It's well-known that there are numerous benefits to offering fried chicken. As the most popular protein globally, chicken can be fried in batches and kept for hours, making it a highly profitable menu item. Furthermore, a recent Technomic report shows that sales in the chicken menu category have grown at an average rate of 12% since 2019.

Are you ready to dive into the fried chicken market? Here’s a brief overview of the commercial kitchen equipment you’ll need to consider for your foodservice operation:

Chicken Fryers

When it comes to commercial deep fryers, operators can choose between open fryers and pressure fryers.

Pressure Fryers

If you're serving bone-in fried chicken, investing in a pressure fryer is a good idea. Pressure fryers consistently deliver flavorful, tender, and juicy fried chicken. Additionally, pressure frying is quicker than any other method when cooking in large quantities.

When considering pressure fryer options, it's important to think about how much product you'll be frying and what advanced features you might require.

Henny Penny offers various pressure fryer models to meet the needs of different commercial kitchens. We provide standard pressure fryers for normal volume kitchens and Velocity Series pressure fryers for high-volume kitchens aiming to save on oil, labor, and time.

Open Fryers

If you’re offering a variety of fried foods, including fried chicken, an open fryer might be ideal for your establishment. Open fryers create a crispier product, boost overall output, and offer ample customization options.

There are several factors to consider when selecting open fryers for your commercial kitchen.

Firstly, are your menu items prepared from freezer-to-fryer or freshly breaded? Will your kitchen handle large-scale frying? Are you looking for a versatile “workhorse” fryer to meet all your menu requirements? Or do you prefer a more advanced model to enhance operations, ensure consistent food quality, and reduce costs?

Henny Penny provides a wide range of open frying platforms, offering numerous options for every unique kitchen.

Regardless of the fryer you choose, all Henny Penny fryers come with built-in oil filtration as a standard feature. This makes oil filtration effortless, completing the task in just a few minutes with the push of a button.

Keep in mind that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ best commercial fryer for fried chicken.

Heated Holding Cabinets

When serving fried chicken, a holding cabinet is one of the most essential pieces of kitchen equipment you can invest in. With diners increasingly using off-premises channels, peak order times and volumes have become unpredictable. Meanwhile, operators are finding it challenging to keep their kitchens adequately staffed to manage the rush.

The solution to these issues? Cooking in large batches and holding the product until it's ready to serve.

Today's holding cabinets are more than just stainless steel hot boxes – they can maintain the freshness of fried chicken for extended periods without compromising quality. This ensures the chicken remains moist inside with a crispy exterior. Customers won't even notice it's not straight from the fryer!

Henny Penny provides two main options for holding cabinets: our standard cabinet and the more sophisticated SmartHold model.

The Henny Penny standard heated holding cabinet features temperature control to keep the fried chicken ready for serving (the recommended holding temperature for fried chicken is between 175 and 185 degrees Fahrenheit). A simple water pan allows the cabinet to generate steam and maintain the chicken's moisture.

Th Henny Penny SmartHold cabinets offer a more advanced feature – precise humidity control. This is perfect for naturally moist products like fried chicken. SmartHold enables operators to hold the fried chicken and almost any other food for up to 200% longer than most other holding cabinets.

Breadings and Seasonings

In addition to your kitchen equipment, you'll need breadings and seasonings to infuse your fried chicken menu with flavor and texture.

Henny Penny provides several breading and seasoning options to suit every taste, menu, and health consideration. Click here to explore the flavor profiles and menu ideas for our exclusive breadings and seasonings.

Looking to involve an expert? Connect with the Price Davis team to get started!

When considering fried chicken restaurant equipment, there's a lot to think about beyond just the equipment itself.

How will the kitchen workflow be organized? Where will you obtain frying oil and other supplies? How will you receive customer service once the equipment is installed?

Find answers to all these questions and more by downloading From Sourcing to Serving, a comprehensive guide from our chicken experts. It includes 22 pages with everything you need to know about adding chicken to your menu!