Crispy Fried Chicken Gizzards have a deep, rich, meaty flavor, sliced into twisted bits and fried to perfection. It’s cheap yet so tasty and addictive. This will undoubtedly become your new favorite party appetizer or snack!
I was surprised to find out how many people love gizzards. When I was a kid, I would sneak into the kitchen before dinner and see if I could nab it before dinner was served. It’s probably my favorite part of the chicken.
And my son loves these fried chicken gizzards as much as I do. He’ll keep snacking on them after the meal is over if there are any leftovers. And I can’t blame him because they’re really addicting. 😉
What Are Chicken Gizzards?
Did you know that these babies are a delicacy reserved for guests and the head of the house in Africa? Yes, they can be tough if not cooked long enough because the gizzard is a well-used muscle in the chicken’s digestive tract. But it’s tender and absolutely delicious if cooked properly.
Recipe Ingredients
- Chicken Gizzards – The show’s star takes 1½-2 hours to become tender, but the wait is so worth it. 😉
- Seasoning – Onion, celery, bay leaves, thyme, and garlic add flavor and a wonderful aroma.
- All-Purpose Flour – The pantry staple makes fried gizzards nice and crispy. However, you can use your staple gluten-free mix with the same amount if necessary.
- Cornstarch – Mix it with flour to get that perfect crispiness. You can add more flour if you don’t have cornstarch.
- Baking Powder – A pantry staple that creates a light and crispy flour coating.
- Seasonings – Paprika, garlic and onion powder, cayenne, dried herbs, and white pepper create a flavorful coating that’s perfect for this dish. An Italian herb mix will be as good if you’re in a hurry.
- Eggs – A flavorful binder holds the herbed flour mixture to the chicken gizzards.
How to Fry Chicken Gizzards
First Step—Simmer
- Season Gizzards – Place the chicken gizzards in a pot with onion, celery, bay leaves, thyme, smashed garlic, and salt. (Photos 1-2)
- Add water – Add enough water to cover the gizzards by an inch. (Photo 3)
- Simmer – Bring the gizzards to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until tender, 1½-2 hours or more, depending on preference. You may need to add more water to keep gizzards covered. (Photo 4)
Step Two—Coating
- Drain – Drain gizzards in a colander, and remove the celery, bay leaves, and onion. Reserve the broth or freeze it for later. (Photo 5)
- Make the Coating – Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, herbs, and white pepper in a large bowl. (Photo 6)
- Coat the Chicken Gizzards – When ready to fry, dip the gizzards in the egg mixture, then dredge them in the flour mixture, shaking off any excess flour. A ziplock bag makes this process easier. Set aside for about 15 minutes. (Photos 7-8)
Step Three—Frying
- Fry the Gizzards – Heat oil in a deep-fryer or cast iron skillet to 375℉/190℃. The temperature will drop once you add gizzards.
- Then carefully add the gizzards to the hot oil and fry in batches until nice and crispy. It usually takes about 5 minutes.
- Remove them from the oil and place them on a plate lined with paper towels to remove excess oil.
Recipe Variations
- Garlic Parmesan Fried Chicken Gizzards – Add parmesan to the mix to kick it up the flavor scale.
- Crunchy Asian Chicken Gizzard – Add a pinch of ginger and five-spice powder to the coating, then drizzle them in your go-to sweet and sour sauce and soy sauce for a delicious Asian twist.
- Crispy Gizzard Taco – Tacos stuffed with chopped fried gizzards, tomatoes, onions, cheese, and your favorite sauce for a hearty yum! 😉
Tips and Tricks
- The gizzards need to be thoroughly cleaned before cooking.
- If you can get your hands on the fresh ones from your local butcher, that’s better. You can ask them to clean them for you (perhaps at an additional cost).
- To tenderize this tough muscle, you can either stew them slowly until fork-tender as I did. Or brine them in buttermilk for 8-24 (preferably 24 hours) before deep-cooking them.
- Simmer the gizzards over low heat to relax the muscle tissues when braising them. Don’t let them boil, or else it’ll get tough.
- After an hour or two of braising, let them cool first and dry them thoroughly before you slice them into strips and bread them.
Make-Ahead Instructions
You can boil the gizzards ahead of time. Drain and dry before placing them in a ziplock bag or an airtight container. Freeze them for two months or refrigerate them for two days.
Note: Thaw the frozen gizzards overnight inside the fridge and coat them when ready to fry to ensure crispiness.
Serving and Storage Instructions
Serve hot off the stove as an appetizer or meal to enjoy the maximum crispiness. You can refrigerate leftovers for 2-4 days. Or freeze them for up to two months. Reheat in a preheated 350℉/170°C oven for 8-10 minutes or until hot and crispy. An air fryer would also crisp them up again.
FAQs
This appetizing nugget is similar to dark meat in flavor, with a little extra intensity. It takes 50-90 minutes for them to cook tender, but it’s oh-so worth it.
They need moisture and time to get tender. If they dry out, they’ll become little rocks. I like to put them where they stay moist while baking a whole chicken.
Yes, I do. It’s easy to rinse them to get any grit out and remove the extra fat. They’re usually already clean in the States, but I still like to give them a rinse.
What Goes With Fried Gizzards
These babies are great appetizers and love to be paired with others of like mind.
More Deliciously Crispy Chicken Recipes to Try
- Southern Fried Chicken
- Baked Crispy Chicken Wings
- Air Fryer Southern Fried Chicken
- Oven Fried Chicken
- Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Livers
Conclusion
Crispy, tender fried chicken gizzards always make wonderful comfort food. What’s your favorite way to enjoy gizzards? Comment below and let me know.😍
Watch How to Make It
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This blog post was originally published in October 2017 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video.
Fried Chicken Gizzards
Ingredients
Boiling
- 2 pounds (900g) chicken gizzards
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, cut into chunks
- 1-2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon (1g) thyme
- 1-2 cloves garlic, smashed
- Salt to taste
Coating
- 2 cups (240g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (120g) cornstarch, or sub with flour
- 1 teaspoon (4.5g) baking powder
- 1 tablespoon (7g) paprika
- ¾ teaspoon (2g) salt, adjust to taste
- 1 tablespoon (4.75g) garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon (7g) onion powder
- ½-1 teaspoon (1-2g) cayenne pepper
- 1-1½ tablespoons (6-9g) dried herbs (thyme, oregano, parsley, etc.)
- White pepper, to taste
- 2 large eggs
Instructions
Boiling
- Place the chicken gizzards in a pot with onion, celery, bay leaves, thyme, smashed garlic, and salt. Add enough water to cover the gizzards by an inch.
- Bring the gizzards to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until tender, about 1½–2 hours or more, depending on your preference. You may have to add more water to keep gizzards covered.
- Drain gizzards in a colander, and remove celery, bay leaves, and onion. Reserve the broth or freeze it for later use.
Coating
- Whisk the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, herbs, and white pepper in a large bowl.
- When ready to fry, dredge the gizzards in the egg mixture, then the flour mixture, shaking off any excess flour. A ziplock bag works great for this process. Set aside for about 15 minutes.
- Heat oil in a deep fryer or cast-iron skillet to 375℉/190℃. The temperature will drop once you add the gizzards.
- Then carefully add the gizzards to the hot oil and fry in batches until nice and crispy. It usually takes about 5 minutes.
- Remove them from the oil and place them on a plate lined with paper towels to remove excess oil.
Tips & Notes:
- The gizzards need to be thoroughly cleaned before cooking.
- If you can get your hands on the fresh ones from your local butcher, that’s better. You can ask them to clean them for you (perhaps at an additional cost).
- To tenderize this tough muscle, you can either stew them slowly until fork-tender as I did. Or brine them in buttermilk for 8-24 (preferably 24 hours) before deep-cooking them.
- Simmer the gizzards over low heat to relax the muscle tissues when braising them. Don’t let them boil, or else it’ll get tough.
- After an hour or two of braising, let them cool first and dry them thoroughly before you slice them into strips and bread them.
- Don’t skip on the cornstarch and baking powder when making the flour mixture to get the perfect crispiness.
- Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.
David Randall says
I’m so pleased that your recipe starts with the slow boil (in my in my kitchen it’s a simmer, dont toughen by frying those proteins any more than necessary) ,then process, top a southetn Frnch salad. Slice into stir-fry, grace a southern French salad. Confit is another method, which I have not tried yet. Marinate overnight, buttermilk, kefir, vinegar, which i also haven’t tried yet. Meanwhile, gizzards, at $1.19/lb, are you source for pure protein and flavor
David Randall says
Oh, and the remaining broth, if there were aromatics added, is collegen-rich and delicious, versatile
Joseph says
dynamite recipe. who knew ?? used pressure cooker 40 minutes on high broth was great will use for rice cooking. gizzards so tender yummm
Naa says
I love your recipe very much . however can I get the recipe for the dipping sauce?
Immaculate Bites says
Hi Naa! I used the White BBQ Sauce or you can check out my Best Homemade BBQ Sauce Recipes for more choices 🙂
Edna mcclain says
Can you use milk instead of butter milk to coat your gizzards
ImmaculateBites says
Yes you can. Or try out his homemade butter milk here https://www.africanbites.com/how-to-make-buttermilk/
Mark Klem says
How long do you cook them?
ImmaculateBites says
It takes about 1-2 hours to cook.
Heather Johnson says
I love gizzards, I always make gibblet gravy. I am so excited to try this recipe. I have tried several of your recipes all delicious. I am gonna pair this with rice, veggies and cornbread.
ImmaculateBites says
So excited for you to try it out . Enjoy!
Lillian Whitt says
Do you think chicken hearts would work well with this method? I want to do a 50/50 mix of gizzards and hearts. Thank you
ImmaculateBites says
Yes they would work out just fine . Enjoy!
David Randall says
I would say, just don’t cook them so long, just till tender. Gizzards are lean muscle,hearts are organ meat. Be gentle
Chukwuka Promise says
Nice recipe
Piotr says
It’s not a meal with least work, or with fastest cooking time, but these gizzards are pretty cheap so it is kinda well worth it to prepare them well given they can be pretty hard and tough to chew when dealt improperly. As a bonus you get a nice pot of brew for “chicken soup” or rather duck soup. I’m from Poland, and thanks for the recipe!
Imma says
Greetings Piotr! Thank you for your review. I love gizzards and I’m glad you enjoyed them as well 🙂
Andrew Hernandez says
Do you cook them whole, or do you cut the tough middle part out?
Jaine says
When you simmer for the allotted time then deep fry them that part in the middle gets very soft. So you just leave it.
Tom says
So glad I found this recipe. I have loved the gizzard and heart all my life and frankly enjoyed them crunchy and plain.
For many years I have enjoyed just putting them in the oven with BBQ. Granted, this way takes a few hours but well worth it.
imma africanbites says
Indeed, it’s all worth it. Please do let me know how this one turns out for you. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy!
David C Randall says
My experience with gizzards in the midwest has always been a flavorful but unchewable hunk of meat. Because of their cheapness though,I started experimenting. A slow simmer (way below boiling) with aromatics, onion, garlic, bay, transforms them into hunks of pure protein, to be used as wished. Battering and frying, or even dredging and a hot saute, turns them into what a road-trip friend calls “meat cookies”. Season the dredge as desired. But merely tenderized (and if done long and slow you dont have to remove any gristle, just the occasional remnants of the yellowish leathery layer and rare globs of fat). This unfried product is ready to throw into stir-fries, chopped into salads, or to hearten a pasta sauce (commonly done in southern Italy)
When they’re marked down I stock up my freezer.
David C Randall says
Oh, and the cooking broth is invaluable. Loaded with gelatin, flavor and umami