If you like, fry the chicken hours in advance and reheat on a rack in a 375F oven until warm. This excellent karaage recipe from Love Japan (2023, Ten Speed Press) is simple, crunchy, and loaded with balanced flavor. This recipe was slightly adapted from the book written by Sawako Okochi and Aaron Israel with Gabriella Gershenson. If serving as a main course, one batch would satisfy four people.
Course: Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: fried chicken
Servings: 6
Ingredients
2poundsboneless,skin-on (if possible) chicken thighs (see main recipe for tip), cut into quarters
Chubby 3-inch piece of fresh ginger,peeled and grated
3garlic cloves,grated
1teaspooncoarse sea salt,or ½ teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more for sprinkling
¼cupsake
2tablespoonssoy sauce
1large egg
Canola or other neutral oil,for deep-frying
¾cupcornstarch or potato starch
¾cupall-purpose flour
1lemoncut into wedges
Instructions
Place the quartered chicken thighs in a large bowl or a resealable plastic bag.
In a bowl, mix the ginger, garlic, salt, sake, soy sauce, and egg together until well blended. Transfer the marinade to the container with the chicken and mix to coat. Marinate, covered (or sealed), in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or up to overnight. The longer the chicken marinates, the more tender and flavorful it will be. Thirty minutes before frying, pull the chicken from the fridge to remove some of the chill.
Line a baking sheet with two layers of paper towel. Pour 2 inches canola oil into a Dutch oven (or wok) and heat over medium-high heat to 350F on a deep-fry thermometer. (If you don’t have a thermometer, watch the video for a tip.)
Drain the chicken in a mesh strainer to get rid of excess liquid. In a shallow bowl, whisk the cornstarch with the flour. Dredge 4 or 5 pieces of chicken at a time, dusting off any excess. Using dry, heatproof tongs or wooden chopsticks, place the dredged chicken carefully into the hot oil, taking care not to splash.
Fry 4 or 5 pieces at a time (depending on the size of the pan) without overcrowding. Turn after 3 minutes and cook for 3 minutes more. The color should be a nice and golden brown. Transfer to the paper towels and sprinkle with salt. Serve with lemon wedges.
Notes
If you want to go gluten-free, use a 1:1 gluten-free flour mixture such as Bob's Red Mill.My Vietnamese chile sauce recipe is here.