AFF Japan - Karaage - Japanese Fried Chicken

I occasionally grabbed a bag of chicken karaage from supermarket frozen section for this, and I must observe every bite in case I see chicken skin
Yes, I hate chicken skin I always discards it in my every chicken dish. Hence my family doesn't eat it, either

This is the more garlicky version from Nami of Just One Cook Book
Yes, I love garlic I usually add a little more than suggested by recipe. Hence my family loves it, too

Hhhmmm... two similar sentences in one posting. Talking about the power of mum LOL

So satisfied with the result of my first trial of making karaage
Homemade is always the best. No unknown substances added, no foreign ingredients I never hear about used. Yes!

What you need:

500g skinless boneless chicken thigh
salt, ground black pepper
1/4 cup potato starch
1/4 cup plain flour
oil for deep frying

Seasoning:
1 inch ginger
8 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp light soya sauce
1 tbsp sake
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp sugar

Method:

1. Rinse chicken, pat dry with paper towel and cut into 2 inch pieces (try to cut in almost uniform sizes so frying time will be the same). Season with salt and pepper and keep in a ziplock bag or an airtight container
2. Grate ginger and garlic (I used chopper)
3. Add in ginger and garlic to the chicken and the seasonings too. Keep refrigerated (covered) for at least an hour
4. Heat oil to 170degC
5. In a bowl, mix potato starch and plain flour
6. Right before the oil is ready, add the potato starch and flour mix to the chicken. You do not need to mix it evenly. The uneven coating gives each piece its unique texture
7. Gently drop each piece of chicken separately into the oil. Do not overcrowd. Deep fry 3-5 pieces at a time. If you put a lot of chicken in the oil, the temperature will drop quickly and chicken will end up absorbing too much oil
8. Cook for 90 seconds, or until the chicken is cooked through and outside is light golden color. If the chicken changes color too quickly, then the oil temperature is too high. Either put a few more pieces of chicken in the oil or lower the heat. Controlling oil temperature is the key for deep frying
9. Transfer the chicken onto a wire rack to drain excess oil. While resting on the wire rack, the chicken will continue to cook with the remaining heat
10. Between batches (or even while cooking), make sure to pick up crumbs to keep the oil clean (otherwise oil will get darker)
11. When you finish all the batches, then bring the oil to 180C
12. Deep fry for the second time for 45 seconds, or until the skin is nice golden color and crispy
13. Transfer the chicken onto a wire rack or paper towel to drain excess oil. Serve the chicken immediately

As explained by Nami:
Using potato starch gives crispier karaage than corn starch, even though it's a good substitute. Also, please take note that potato flour is different from potato starch

I also must thank Nami for the detailed explanation about deep frying, very useful!

 

 

This post is for Asian Food Fest October 2013: Japan hosted by Alan from Travelling Foodies