Before there was Korean fried chicken, there was Japanese chicken karaage.
There are times when I just get sick and tired of KFC (Korean Fried Chicken) and its million and one variants, and all I crave really, is the simple taste of chicken and that hint of ginger and soy.
No cheese, butter laced gochujang, bbq sauce (the worst) or ranch. And no bones!
I’ve had so many versions over the years and I’m glad that Eric Kim of NYTimes Cooking has laid to rest that question of ‘what is the definitive recipe for chicken karate?’ (watch his video). The answer being, is that there isn’t one.
There was a time when I literally had something deep-fried every week, mostly on weekends, but I’ve been pacing that now but when I do, it’s karaage.
My recipe is almost identical to Eric’s but with one difference- I use an equal part of tapioca starch in my batter with regular flour. You could do the starch exclusively, but flour mixed in gives it a crunch that’s firm, but not too crunchy which is my preference.
Ingredients:
1pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces
1(2-inch) piece ginger, peeled and finely grated (2 teaspoons)
2tablespoons soy sauce
2tablespoons sake
½teaspoon granulated sugar
½teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1large egg
1/2 cup tapioca starch mixed with 1/2 cup regular flour.
About 1 quart canola or vegetable oil, for frying
Step 1
To a medium bowl, add the chicken, ginger, soy sauce, sake, sugar and salt. Toss to combine. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour.
Step 2
Place a wire rack over a large, paper towel-lined sheet pan. Crack the egg into a small bowl and whisk. To a large bowl, add the starches. One by one, dip the chicken into the egg, then into the batter mixture until evenly coated. Set the coated chicken pieces on the left side of the wire rack.
Step 3
To a medium saucepan, add enough oil to fill a third of the way up. Heat the oil over medium-high to 320 degrees. Turn your hood vent on, if you’ve got one, and open a nearby window, if possible. Working in batches, fry the chicken until crunchy and light brown, adjusting the heat so the oil temperature stays between 300 and 320 degrees, 4 to 6 minutes per batch. Using tongs or a slotted spoon, transfer the fried chicken to the right side of the wire rack, away from the portion that was exposed to the raw chicken, to rest slightly.
Step 4
Serve with the optional (but very delicious) lemon wedges and mayonnaise dusted with togarashi.
