Karaage Chicken
I (Aiden) made karaage chicken with Ad. It’s Japanese fried chicken: juicy, crisp, and really good when you double fry it. I like mine with a buffalo butter dip.
- Style
- Japanese fried chicken
- Serve with
- Buffalo butter dip
Details
What is karaage
Karaage is a Japanese way of frying chicken. The meat is marinated with ginger, garlic, sake, and soy, coated in rice flour, and fried twice. The first fry cooks it, the second makes it properly crisp.
What we made
We used chicken thighs, marinated them for four hours, then fried them twice until golden. I made buffalo butter as a dip — it’s buttery, spicy, and perfect with the crunch.
Cooking
Ingredients
Karaage
- 1 kg boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
- 10 g ginger, grated
- 10 g garlic, grated
- 60 ml sake
- 60 ml soy sauce
- 120–150 g rice flour (enough to coat)
- Neutral oil for frying
Buffalo butter dip
- 50 g unsalted butter
- 40–60 ml hot sauce
- Pinch of salt
- Squeeze of lemon (optional)
Method
- Marinade — Mix ginger, garlic, sake, and soy. Coat the chicken and chill for 4 hours.
- Coat — Drain, then toss in rice flour until evenly covered.
- First fry — Heat oil to 160°C. Fry chicken in batches for 4–5 minutes until light golden. Rest on a rack.
- Second fry — Raise oil to 185–190°C. Fry again for 1–2 minutes until deep golden and crisp.
- Buffalo butter dip — Melt butter and stir in hot sauce, salt, and lemon.
Serving
Eat karaage straight away while hot and crunchy. Dip in buffalo butter or mayo if you want it softer.