No5 [Cooking] Tori Kara-age

Tori Kara-age

The popular dish “Tori Kara-age” (Fried Chicken) has been eaten in Japan or over 90 years and is a versatile staple of Japanese dinner tables, izakaya style drinking establishments and in packed lunches. It is made by first seasoning the meat with ingredients such as soy sauce, garlic and ginger, coating it with flour and potato starch and then frying it in the oil. The crispy coating differs from that used in tempura and his method can also be applied to fish.
This recipe uses a product that makes the preparation process simple, with the seasoning and coating all done in one step. The kara-age is not deep fried either so this is a nice dish for those who are watching their weight.

Ingredients:

(Serves 1-2)
One bag of kara-age mix
150-200g boneless chicken thighs

How to prepare:

1. Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces.
2. Put the chicken and the whole of the kara-age mix into a plastic bag and then shake so that the mix thoroughly coats the chicken. Then leave to stand for three minutes.
3. Shake the bag lightly, rubbing the coating into the meat to ensure it sticks evenly.
4. Heat two teaspoons of vegetable oil in a frying pan before putting in the chicken.
5. Cover the pan and cook for around two minutes on a medium heat.
6. Once the chicken pieces have turned a light brown, lift the cover and turn them over to ensure the whole surface is fried to a nice crispy texture.

Copyright Japan Centre/Yuko Fujiwara