How to Make Ultra-Crispy Korean Fried Chicken
The first time I took a bit of super crispy Korean fried chicken with its glorious sweet and savory sauce, I was hooked. Restaurants (and the super popular chain Bonchon) around the country are catching on to this delicious take on fried chicken, so we decided to make our own. Follow this Korean fried chicken recipe, and it'll be your new best friend for serving as a delicious appetizer or main meal.
What Is Korean Fried Chicken?
Simply known as "chikin" in Korea, Korean fried chicken gets its signature crispiness by getting breaded (in a spiced mix) and double fried. That's right, it goes in the fryer twice, making it ultra crispy while maintaining a juicy chicken interior. The crispiness is already enough to make you swoon, but Korean fried chicken goes a step further by getting brushed with a special sauce with the perfect balance of sweet, savory, and spicy.
Korean Fried Chicken Ingredients
These are the ingredients you'll need to make the crispy chicken at home. If you haven't heard of some of these ingredients, they'll be available in larger grocery stores or your local Asian market.
- Cooking Oil: Choose a neutral oil with a high smoke point for frying. We like canola or peanut oil.
- Chicken: Boneless chicken thighs or chicken wings make a great crunchy bite.
- Mirin: This is a sweet rice wine for cooking that provides a bit of tang and sweetness.
- Fresh Ginger: You'll need two teaspoons of freshly grated ginger.
- Garlic: We'll grate a few cloves to put in the breading and in the sauce.
- Potato Starch: You can substitute corn starch if you can't find it.
- Gochujang: It's a fermented red chili paste and gives the sauce its red color.
- Ketchup: This provides sweet and salty flavor.
- Sesame Seeds and Green Onions: They're cute and delicious toppers for the finishing touch.
Ingredients
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3 pound skinless, boneless chicken thighs, quartered, and/or chicken wings, tips removed and wings separated at joints
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1 tablespoon sweet rice wine (mirin)
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2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
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3 cloves garlic, grated
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2 teaspoon kosher salt
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3 cup canola or peanut oil
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½ - 1 cup potato starch
Sauce
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⅓ cup gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste)
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3 tablespoon oyster sauce
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2 tablespoon sweet rice wine (mirin)
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2 tablespoon ketchup
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2 tablespoon honey
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3 cloves garlic, grated
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1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
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1 ½ teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
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Thinly bias-sliced green onions
Directions
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In a large bowl toss together first five ingredients (through salt) until evenly coated. Cover and marinate in refrigerator at least 1 hour.
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Preheat oven to 200°F. Line a 15x10-inch baking pan with foil. Place a wire rack in pan. Pour oil into a 10-inch cast-iron skillet. Heat over medium-high until a thermometer registers 350°F.
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Place 1/2 cup of the potato starch in a shallow dish. Dip chicken pieces in starch to coat, tapping off excess. Add additional potato starch as needed.
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Fry chicken, in batches, in hot oil about 5 minutes until lightly golden, turning once. Transfer to wire rack in baking pan.
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When all chicken has been fried once, increase oil temperature to 375°F. Return chicken, in batches, to oil. Fry about 4 minutes or until done (175°F) and deep golden brown and crisp, turning once. Place finished chicken on rack in baking pan. Keep warm in preheated oven while frying remaining chicken.
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For sauce, in a large bowl stir together the next seven ingredients (through ginger). Toss chicken with sauce. Top with sesame seeds and green onions. Serve immediately.
How to Make Air-Fryer Korean Fried Chicken:
Preheat air fryer at 400°F. Coat air fryer basket with nonstick cooking spray. Coat chicken pieces with starch as directed in Step 3. Coat pieces with cooking spray. Air-fry chicken, in batches, 15 minutes or until done (175°F) and golden, turning once halfway through cooking time. Coat in sauce and serve as directed in step 6.Nutrition analysis per serving: 475 calories, 46 g protein, 47 g carbohydrate, 10 g total fat (2 g sat. fat), 181 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber, 13 g total fat, 4% Vitamin A, 8% Vitamin C, 792 mg sodium, 3% calcium, 13% iron
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
| 571 | Calories |
| 21g | Fat |
| 47g | Carbs |
| 46g | Protein |
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings Per Recipe 6 | |
| Calories 571 | |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Total Fat 21g | 27% |
| Saturated Fat 3g | 15% |
| Cholesterol 181mg | 60% |
| Sodium 792mg | 34% |
| Total Carbohydrate 47g | 17% |
| Total Sugars 13g | |
| Protein 46g | 92% |
| Vitamin C 7.3mg | 8% |
| Calcium 42mg | 3% |
| Iron 2.3mg | 13% |
| Potassium 468mg | 10% |
| Folate, total 19.3mcg | |
| Vitamin B-12 0.6mcg | |
| Vitamin B-6 0.6mg | |
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.