I love Karaage fried chicken. It’s light, extra crispy, and oh so flavorful. These make for a great appetizer or even a non-traditional tailgating dish.
Chicken Karaage is fried chicken cooked Japanese style which includes chicken marinated in sake among a few other ingredients.
I stayed true to the technique but added a few of my favorite spices for additional seasoning.
MOOD MUSIC
Karaage fried chicken is fun, simple, yet interesting and deeply flavored. Average White Band's "Love Your Life" is a perfect pairing cause it has many of those same qualities. The topic is serious but the beat and groove are infectiously fun and layered.
Chicken Karaage Ingredients
- Bone-in Chicken Thighs
- Sake
- Mirin
- Soy Sauce or Tamari
- Fresh Ginger
- Fresh Garlic
- Potato Starch
- Paprika
- Allspice
- Kosher Salt
- Black Pepper
How To Make Karaage Fried Chicken
Mix the marinade ingredients together in.a medium to large mixing bowl. Set aside.
Chop the chicken into chunks, add to the marinade, and let sit overnight refrigerated.
Pre-heat fryer to 350 degrees F. While your oil heats set up your frying station. My station includes a cooling rack (wire rack placed inside of a baking sheet) and a shallow bowl of seasoned flower for dredging.
In a shallow baking dish large enough to hold the chicken, combine ginger, garlic, sake, soy sauce and sugar. Toss chicken pieces in marinade to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours.
Remove chicken from the marinade and allow to warm to room temperature on the rack.
Dredge the chicken into the potato starch and then fry for about 3 minutes. Remove chicken from fryer and either place on a cleaned wire rack or a paper towel-lined bowl.
Increase the frying temperature to 375 degrees F. Re-fry the chicken for another minute and then serve.
Chicken Karaage Recipe Notes
Use chicken thighs as they have more flavor and you have less risk of overcooking.
Buy bone-in, skin on thighs. Take the time and de-bone them. It’s actually pretty easy. See how I do it in the recipe video below.
Corn starch or any other starch works fine as a substitute for potato starch.
The interior of the chicken will be seasoned well thanks to the marinade but feel free to season the flour and/or add spice post frying.
If you don’t have mirin on hand, add a tablespoon of sugar to the marinade.
I like to serve these immediately but they still taste great at room temperature.
Serve the Karaage chicken with your favorite sauce. For me it’s a roasted red pepper sauce or even a mayo-sriracha mixed dressing.
These are great with a slaw or greens salad.
Other Fried Chicken Recipes
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Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger or finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves smashed
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ½ cup dry sake
- ⅔ cup soy sauce
Chicken
- 4 skin-on chicken thighs deboned, cut into 2-inch chunks
- 1 cup potato starch substitute corn starch if necessary
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Mix the marinade ingredients together in.a medium to large mixing bowl. Set aside.
- Chop the chicken into chunks, add to the marinade, and let sit overnight refrigerated.
- Pre-heat fryer to 350 degrees F. While your oil heats set up your frying station. My station includes a cooling rack (wire rack placed inside of a baking sheet) and a shallow bowl of seasoned flower for dredging.
- In a shallow baking dish large enough to hold the chicken, combine ginger, garlic, sake, soy sauce and sugar. Toss chicken pieces in marinade to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours.
- Remove chicken from the marinade and allow to warm to room temperature on the rack.
- Dredge the chicken into the potato starch and then fry for about 3 minutes. Remove chicken from fryer and either place on a cleaned wire rack or a paper towel-lined bowl.
- Increase the frying temperature to 375 degrees F. Re-fry the chicken for another minute and then serve.
Video
