Hello friends! I’m back again with another recipe that is guaranteed to please. Today, we will be making karaage! I bet some of you are wonder, “what in the world is, karaage?!?!” For short, its Japanese fried chicken! In my humble opinion, it’s one of the best ways to fry chicken and it comes out juicy and flavorful with a light crispy coating every time! Simple ingredient list and everything can be found at your local grocery store. Let’s get started!
Ingredients
The ingredients listed for this recipe are really easy to find! In Japanese cooking, the ingredients are usually simple with the method of bringing them together being the difference maker. For this recipe, the star is the potato flour. Fried chicken has got to have a nice crispy and light coating and that’s exactly what the potato flour does! Now if you can’t find potato flour, cornstarch is a great alternative.
The Marinade
In a large bowl, add the chicken pieces, ginger, garlic, rice vinegar (or sake), soy sauce, sesame oil, white pepper and salt. Today, we’re using boneless chicken thighs like most karaage recipes call for. Feel free to use skin-less chicken breast as well. Traditional, the recipe uses sake but today I’m using rice vinegar as a replacement. I’ve found that this blend comes together so well in the end. The flavors work in layers so one is not overpowering the other but working together. It’s amazing! Mix thoroughly, and marinate for at least one hour but no more than 24 hours since some of the ingredients are acidic.
The Dipping Sauce
for the bang bang sauce, in a bowl mix together the mayonnaise and sweet chili sauce. Set aside until ready to serve. Really simple, but it’s mind-blowing! Goes well with pretty much anything that is fried☺.
Crispy Coating
After marinating, sprinkle in the potato flour (or cornstarch) a tablespoon at a time until the chicken pieces are coated lightly.
The coating should be a really light batter, mostly dry but not saturated with flour like normal fried chicken.
Tip: if you notice the coating is more on the wet side, add a small amount of potato flour or cornstarch to balance it out. This is the most important step and the secret to making karaage chicken. So take your time to make sure you get the right coating.
Let’s Get Golden
Today I’m using a small deep fryer and I highly recommend it! Easy clean up and you get that overall crispiness you’d get at a restaurant at home! I’ve also included how to cook the karaage on the stove in the recipe below! ☺
Fill your deep fryer to max line with vegetable oil and get temperature to 300 degrees. Working in batches, add in a few pieces of chicken, being careful not to over crowd the frying basket and fry for 5-7 minutes.
Once all pieces go through the first fry, raise the temperature to 350 and fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.
Using the double fry method allows you to cook the chicken during the first fry at a lower temperature while still remaining juicy. The second fry at a higher temperature is solely meant to get the exterior golden brown and crispy.
Transfer to a cooling rake until you are ready to serve.
Garnish with green onions, lemon wedges and a side of dipping sauce.
There you have it, Karaage (Japanese fried chicken)!
*On Pinterest? Click the pic below to pin!*
See how easy that was?!? Until next time, cook like a king!
Karaage (Japanese Fried Chicken)
Ingredients
Karaage (Japanese Fried Chicken)
- 2 lbs. boneless chicken thigh cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 cup potato flour or cornstarch
- 1 tbsp. ginger grated
- 1 tbsp. garlic grated
- 1 tsp. sake or rice vinegar
- 1 tsp. soy sauce
- 1 tsp. sesame oil
- ½ tsp. white pepper
- ¼ tsp. salt
- 2 cups vegetable oil for frying
- 2 lemons cut into wedges
For Garnish
- 1/4 cup cup green onion chopped
Bang Bang Sauce
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ¾ cup sweet chili sauce
Instructions
Bang Bang Sauce
- In a bowl mix together the mayonnaise and sweet chili sauce. Set aside until ready to serve.
Karaage (Japanese Fried Chicken)
- In a large bowl, add the chicken pieces, ginger, garlic, rice vinegar (or sake), soy sauce, sesame oil, white pepper and salt.
- Mix thoroughly, and marinate for at least one hour but no more than 24 hours since some of the ingredients are acidic.
- After marinating, sprinkle in the potato flour (or cornstarch) a tablespoon at a time until the chicken pieces are coated lightly. The coating should be mostly dry but not saturated with flour like normal fried chicken.
- If using a deep fryer: fill to max line and get temperature to 300 degrees. Working in batches, add in a few pieces of chicken, being careful not to over crowd the frying basket and fry for 5-7 minutes. Once all pieces go through the first fry, raise the temperature to 350 and fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.
- If frying on the stove: add about an inch of oil to a deep frying pan over medium heat. Working in batches, add in a few pieces of chicken, being careful not to over crowd the pan and fry for 5-7 minutes.
- Once all pieces go through the first fry, raise the temperature to high heat and fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.
- Transfer to a cooling rake until you are ready to serve.
- Garnish with green onions, lemon wedges and a side of dipping sauce. Enjoy!
