Fried chicken turns fanciful in this Japanese-style recipe
Kara-age is the common name for Japanese-style fried chicken and, like gyoza and ramen, falls into the wafu-chuka family – the name given to Chinese-influenced Japanese food. From Zenbu Zen by Jane Lawson, this version of tori to gobo no kara-age includes burdock root in the coating and an addictive sweet and tangy sauce. Serve with lemon wedges and a little sea salt on the side.
Serves 6–8 as part of a multi-dish meal
INGREDIENTS
1 kg chicken thigh fillets, skin on
2 tablespoons shoyu
2 tablespoons mirin
1 tablespoon sake
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
120 g katakuriko or potato starch, plus extra if needed
50 g coarsely grated burdock root
Sauce
80 ml rice vinegar
80 ml niban dashi
2 teaspoons usukuchi shoyu (light Japanese soy)
2 tablespoons caster sugar
2 teaspoons fresh or bottled yuzu juice or lemon juice
A few drops of sesame chilli oil or sesame oil
1 slice of fresh ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
Black or toasted sesame seeds (optional)
TO MAKE
Cut the chicken into 4 cm squarish pieces. Combine the shoyu, mirin, sake and garlic in a non-metallic bowl. Working over the bowl, squeeze the grated ginger in your hand, or in a small piece of muslin (cheesecloth), to extract the juice into the other ingredients – discard the fibrous remains. Add the chicken pieces and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes – no longer as the flavour will become too strong.
Combine all the sauce ingredients except the sesame seeds in a saucepan with 1 tablespoon of water. Stir over high heat until the sugar has dissolved, then bring to the boil and cook for about 5 minutes, or until slightly syrupy. Remove from the heat, discard the ginger and set aside.
When ready to serve, one-third fill a deep-fryer or large heavy-based saucepan with oil and heat to 180°C, or until a cube of bread dropped into the oil browns in 15 seconds.
Tip the chicken pieces into a colander to drain off the marinade, then place them in a large bowl. Add the starch and burdock and mix well. The mixture should be a little sticky, but not too wet – if it is, add a little extra starch.
Cook the chicken in batches for 6–7 minutes, or until the coating is golden and crisp and the chicken is cooked through. Drain well on kitchen paper and keep warm in a low oven while you cook the rest of the chicken.
While the last batch of chicken is deep-frying, bring the sauce just to the boil again, then remove from the heat. Place all the chicken in a large clean bowl and drizzle in half the sauce while tossing the chicken. Repeat with the remaining sauce, tossing well to ensure a light, even coating. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if using, toss again, then serve immediately.
Recipe and image from Zenbu Zen by Jane Lawson, published by Murdoch Books, RRP $69.99.
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