Korean Fried Chicken

Crispy fried chicken drowned in sweet and sour Korean dipping sauce!

INGREDIENTS

For the brine: 

• 2kg chicken (selection of wings, drumsticks & pieces)
• 200ml hot water
• 100g caster sugar
• 75g sea salt
• 1l water

For the coating: 

• 95g/ 3/4 cup cornflour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

For the batter: 

• 220g / 1 cup plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 65g/ 1/2 cup cornflour
• 350ml SodaStream sparkling water

For the sauce: 

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons tomato sauce / ketchup
• 3 tablespoons gochujang (Korean chilli paste)
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon minced ginger
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• Optional: sriracha (to taste)

For the frying: 

• Rice bran oil

To serve: 

• Sesame seeds
• Fresh shallots, finely sliced
• Fresh red chillo

METHOD

1. To brine the chicken: dissolve the sugar & salt in the hot water. Add the water and then submerge the chicken and allow to brine for 4 hours (or overnight). When ready, pat dry with paper towel and then allow to dry a bit more for about an hour before coating.

2. To coat the chicken: Mix cornflour, baking powder & salt in a bowl. Toss each chicken piece to coat in the mixture. Set aside on a plate lined with baking paper.
3. To make the batter: Mix batter ingredients in a bowl, put all the chicken in the batter and toss to coat.
4. To make the dipping sauce: in a small saucepan, whisk all the ingredients together until sugar has dissolved. Set aside.
5. To fry the chicken: Heat up the oil in a deep set fry pan or saucepan. The oil should be approx 175°C. To test, drop a bit of batter, it should take a few minutes to turn brown. When the oil is ready, lift out pieces of chicken individually, shaking to allow excess batter to drip off before placing into the hot oil. Cook in batches, flipping half way, for approx 8-14 minutes (or until golden brown). Chicken wings will be quicker than drumsticks. Alternatively use a deep fryer (in which you can submerge chicken until golden). Using tongs, lift out chicken onto a plate lined with paper towel.
6. To serve: dunk each piece of chicken in the dipping sauce, garnish with sesame seeds & fresh shallots & red chilli. Eat immediately.

Recipe by: Anisa Sabet