ばんごはんなんですか？日本チケーンからげ！

Mmm, I love this recipe, and so does my family. Its quick. Its easy. It’s absolutely delicious. Crunchy, tender morsels of  chicken thigh fillets. Marinated in  soy, garlic and ginger. Drenched in cornflour. Shallow fried to perfection. Garnished with lemon.

Granted it’s not exactly a weight watchers special, but  I do try to balance out the naughtiness of this  meal with a side serving of steamed vinegared rice, green beans and butter lettuce.

I’m sure that every Japanese household has its own special recipe for Karaage handed down through the generations, but  this is the  version that I use and love.

Karaage Japanese Fried Chicken

Feeds: 6 Hungry People

Ingredients

1 kg chicken thigh fillets; diced into bite sized pieces
1  cup cornflour
Vegetable oil for frying
Lemon, cut into wedges to serve

Marinade

4 tablespoons soy sauce
1 thumb sized piece of ginger, finely grated
2 cloves of garlic, finely grated
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoons mirin
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon white pepper

Method

1. Combine marinade ingredients in a large glass or ceramic bowl.
2. Add chicken and mix thoroughly to coat evenly. Cover bowl with clingwrap and refrigerate for a minimum 30 minutes to allow the flavours to develop.  Overnight is better.
3.  Heat wok and add vegetable oil to reach a depth of about 3 cm. Heat oil to 180C over a medium heat. If you don’t have a thermometer, test the temperature with a small cube of bread. When dropped in the oil it should turn golden brown in about 40 seconds.
4. Working in 4 or 5 batches, drain chicken from the marinade and drench in cornflour, taking care to shake off any excess. Fry each batch for about 5 minutes until chicken is golden and cooked through. Drain well on paper towels.
5. Serve with lemon wedges.