Korean Fried Chicken, The King of Chicken Wings!
A New Yorker colleague and friend searched everywhere for real Korean fried chicken wherever he went to the UK. He noted that what was advertised as Korean fried chicken wasn’t the genuine article, and he couldn’t find any. I made some one evening and had some leftovers the next day when he happened to drop by. Whilst he was again complaining about not being able to find any, I piped up and said I had some and gave him a try. His response was: “Whoa?! This is the real deal. Where did you get it?” I said I made it. With disappointment on his face, he solemnly said, “that’s no use to me!”. It’s a little tricky, but definitely worth the effort, especially in a chicken wing cook-off. To me, this is the ultimate chicken wing, although several people have said “yes but wait till you try mine!” Popularised by the US military in Korea during the Korean conflict, variations of it have spread all around the world. You can use other cuts of chicken, but I save this for wings.
Ingredients:
– Oil for deep frying
– 10 chicken wings
– 1 tablespoon of salt
– 1/2 tablespoon of fresh ground black pepper
– 1/2 tablespoon of baking powder
– 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger
– 1/2 tablespoon of garlic powder
– 125g of cornflour
Optional for brine:
– 1 tablespoon of peppercorns
– 2 cloves of minced garlic
The Sauce:
– 3 tablespoons of butter
– 5 small dried chillies (diced)
– 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
– 3 cloves of minced garlic
– 65ml of gochujang
– 2 tablespoons of ketchup
– 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
– 1 tablespoon soy sauce
– 65ml honey –
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
Garnish:
– 1/2 a cup of crushed peanuts
– Sesame seeds
– Spring onions – freshly diced.
Method:
1. Brine your wings in a huge pot and add enough water to cover all the wings, add a tablespoon of salt, 2-4 cloves of minced garlic & 1 tablespoon of whole peppercorns, mix & add the wings when the water is still cold.
2. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 mins, until chicken is cooked & the skin begins to split. Drain through a colander & allow to cool till cool enough to handle. Pat dry with kitchen roll and place each wing individually on a baking tray. Refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours, ideally overnight.
3. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, baking powder & garlic powder.
4. Rub your wings with grated ginger & season with this mixture and set each wing on a tray. Place cornflour into a large bowl.
5. Take each seasoned wing & coat it with cornflour, pressing it in.
6. First fry: fry at 130 degrees for 15-20 minutes until skin is slightly crispy.
7. Allow to cool as you do the next batch.
8. Second fry: fry at 190 degrees for 10-15 minutes until chicken is a deep gold colour & crispy.
9. Make the sauce – ideally, start as you start frying & multitask. Add butter, chillies, ginger & garlic to a saucepan & cook until fragrant, about 2 mins. Stir in gochujang, ketchup, vinegar & soy sauce until boiling, then stir in honey and brown sugar & simmer until thickened.
10. pour sauce over wings until evenly coated, add peanuts, sesame seeds & spring onions & toss about.
No Comments