For Japanese-style fried chicken with sake, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic flavors, try this easy-to-follow chicken karaage recipe. As an appetizer or as part of a delicious meal with rice and vegetables. My mother used to prepare this for us to bring on picnics and it even tastes excellent cold.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 10 mins |
| Additional Time: | 30 mins |
| Total Time: | 55 mins |
| Servings: | 6 |
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sake (Japanese rice wine)
- 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
- 2 cups vegetable oil for frying
- ¾ cup cornstarch
Instructions
- Combine soy sauce, sake, and ginger in a large bowl. Add chicken; turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Place cornstarch in a large resealable plastic bag. Add chicken; seal bag and toss until chicken is coated with cornstarch.
- Fry chicken in batches until golden brown and juices run clear, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels or on a wire rack.
- Please be sure to use regular rice wine (sake) for this recipe. Don’t confuse it with sweet rice wine (mirin) or rice vinegar!
- We have determined the nutritional value of oil for frying based on a retention value of 10% after cooking. Amount will vary depending on cooking time and temperature, ingredient density, and specific type of oil used.
Reviews
It was just “ok” for me. I was not crazy about the taste of the batter. And, to me it needs some kind of dipping sauce.
Very tasty and very simple. I’ll make it again.
I couldn’t find sake… but I used white wine and it worked really good… it is a simple recipe but a really delicious one.
Made as directed. Great flavour but I let the cornstarch get wet on the meat so it ‘globbed’ up a bit. Next time I will put in the oil right after dipping in cornstarch.
It’s not exactly like real Japanese Karaage because it uses cornstarch but it definitely still comes out really yummy. I personally didn’t have Japanese sake, so when marinating the meat I just used soy sauce, grated ginger, and minced garlic. Hopefully I will have sake next time so I can taste what the original recipe is actually like!
Great recipe! I recommend adding a liberal amount of black pepper and serving with chili oil for a spicier version.
Perfect as written and I wouldn’t change a thing. Tons of flavor and super easy to make.