Chicken Karaage Recipe
Here’s my recipe for Japanese-style fried chicken or karaage. (pronounce each syllable separately, ka-ra-a-ge)
Chicken Karaage (Kara-age)
Ingredients:
2 large boneless chicken thighs cut into bite-sized pieces. I leave the skin on for extra flavor but it’s not required.
Marinade:
2 tsp grated ginger
1 clove garlic minced (optional)
3 Tbs soy sauce
1 Tbs Mirin
Cooking:
About 1 cup or more of cornstarch for coating the chicken
Cooking oil for frying
Instructions:
Mix the marinade and chicken together, store in the refrigerator for at least 45 minutes to an hour but not much more than that.
Heat oil in a heavy pot. You don’t have to use a deep fryer but add enough oil in a heavy pan so that most of the chicken is submerged when it’s added.
When the oil is hot enough for frying. Remove the chicken from the marinade and thoroughly coat each piece in cornstarch.
Immediately add (one piece at a time) to the hot oil.
Here’s a tip. I turn each piece once to even-out the cooking. When it’s lightly browned, I remove the chicken and let it drain for 5 minutes. Then I re-fry it again, turning it over to evenly cook until golden brown.
This second frying gives it an extra crunch, which helps to keep the chicken crisp for bento… like this one!
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Wow, it looks incredible!!! Yummy!
Hi Susan! Thanks for stopping by and leaving a nice comment.
Yummm, I will defiantly be trying this, thanks for sharing!!
Hi Steph, Yay! Can’t wait to see some karaage in your lunch!
wow,Karaage is my all time favourite japanese food.
Thanks for sharing the receipe.
Hi bobo! I know, karaage is so very yummy. Glad you like the recipe.
yumsss…Thanks for the double-frying tip debra, I always can’t seem to get fried chicken to remain crisp in my bentos = no fried chicken in bentos.
Gonna try this with turkey breast pieces…I like being difficult
. Thanks for the recipe!
I’ve never tried it, but I think I’m going to after looking at your picture!! It looks very tasty!!
Hi Cassandra, Yes please do, it’s delicious.
Oh wow, that looks really good! I haven’t had karaage since I was in Japan, and this is making me hungry
Thank you Mathias!
Thank you! I have always loved karaage, but no clue how to make it.
Hi Shannon! Are you going to try the recipe?
Sounds soooo goood! And easy to make, too!
Thanks Katy! Yep, it was pretty easy to cook. Saba Man loved it.
Thank you so much for posting this recipe!! I lived in Japan for 9 years and I miss this chicken so much now that I am back in the US.
Hi Bonnie, Glad to of posted recipe! Enjoy.
This looks like the perfect dish to serve tonight for the NFL season opening football game. The guys will love it, I’m sure. Thanks!
Hi Chicken, Thanks and welcome to our blog! We are watching the game tonight too!
As I suspected, this dish was a total hit with my guys last night. I used 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut to bite-sized pieces and doubled the marinade recipe. They said it was the best chicken nuggets I’ve ever made…and I’ve made a lot. Thanks for another great recipe! You made me a super-star last night.
Yay! So glad to hear that my recipe was a success!
Debra – I made this for a 6 year old b-day party. It was a BIG hit!!
Hi Janea! Oh wow! Thanks so much for sharing your success! Glad you and your party guests liked the chicken. It’s a popular recipe here too.