Japanese Fried Chicken
By Andrew Zimmern
I’m making karaage, izakaya-style Japanese fried chicken… bite-size chicken thigh pieces quickly marinated, dredged in flour and potato starch and double fried for an extra crispy crunch. I like to season mine with a mix of salt, cumin and Szechuan peppercorns, and serve with Kewpie mayo and togarashi. It’s seriously the best fried chicken I make, a guaranteed crowd pleaser.
Karaage
Ingredients
- 5 boneless, skin on chicken thighs
- Salt and pepper for seasoning
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon grated garlic
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sake
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup potato starch
- Mayonnaise, lemon and togarashi, for serving
Instructions
Cut the chicken thighs in 4ths or 6ths to make bite size chunks. Marinate in ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sake and sesame oil for 30-45 minutes, no more.
Meanwhile heat 6 cups oil to 325 degrees.
Place the AP flour in one bowl and the potato starch in another.
After marinating, dip the chicken one piece at a time in the AP flour and then dredge in the potato starch, fry 5-6 pieces at a time maintaining 325 degree temp and cook for a few minutes to light gold, reserve on to a wire rack and repeat with all chicken pieces.
Raise heat to 375/380 and repeat to crisp all chicken and cook through to walnut brown. Drain again on a rack fitted in a pan.
Season with salt or a seasoned salt (I like salt/cumin/Szechuan peppercorns).
Serve immediately with Kewpie mayonnaise, lemon wedges, shichimi togarashi.
