Simple Korean Fried Chicken - Korpino Feed Korpino Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Why is Korean fried chicken so crispy? ›

Cornstarch - You could also use potato starch instead. However, having starch in the mix is essential for making Korean fried chicken. The addition of starch is one of the secrets to why Korean fried chicken is so crispy! Water - This is the liquid use to make the wet batter.

Before the chicken is battered, fried, seasoned or sauced, Korean fried chicken is often marinated in a mixture of buttermilk, spices, and sometimes fruit juice. This important marination step infuses flavor and tenderizes the meat, ensuring that every single bite of chicken is tender and bursting with flavor.

Chicken mu is Korean pickled radish that is specifically for pairing with Korean fried chicken, but it is also a great side dish for pretty much anything. It's sweet, tangy, crunchy, and totally necessary with Korean fried chicken in my opinion!

High in Fat and Calories:

Traditional Korean fried chicken is marinated in a batter laden with cornstarch, flour, and spices, then deep-fried. This process results in a crispy exterior and juicy interior, but also traps unhealthy fats and calories.

However, in Korea, fried chicken is more commonly made with wet batter. Some people simply use frying mix (aka tempura mix) to make wet batter, and there's even frying mix specifically made for chicken. Some use a combination of frying mix and starch to add extra crunch.

Ingredient Tips

My not-so-secret tip to the best fried chicken is a combination of FLOUR, CORNSTARCH, and BAKING POWDER. When mixed with the flour, the cornstarch makes the flour coating crispier and gives it that golden brown color! (It has to do with prevention of gluten development.)

Cornstarch typically makes for a crispier finish than flour. Cornstarch absorbs moisture from the food and expands, giving deep-fried foods a crispy coating. When the food is fried, the moisture cooks out of the cornstarch, leaving a crackly, puffy coating on the outside.

Safety Assurance: The addition of baking powder promotes the formation of a loose structure in the coating, increases surface area, facilitates heat exchange during frying, lowers frying temperatures, and reduces the generation of harmful substances, ensuring consumers can eat more safely and confidently.

The vinegar-marinated radish, called Chicken-mu in South Korean, is a white cube-shaped side dish the size of an adult's thumbnail. Usually, when the Korean-fried chicken is served, it is provided free of charge, but there are places that sell it for around 50 cents.

Unlike most other fried chicken recipes, Korean fried chicken is often double-fried. The chicken is typically fried the first time to cook it and evaporate water from the skin, then fried yet again to brown and crisp it quickly while avoiding overcooking the meat.

What is the number 1 fried chicken in Korean? ›

BBQ Chicken

Of course, if you don't know this brand, you'll say it's barbecue. In Korea, the word BBQ is more commonly referred to as this brand name than barbecue. Started in a small village in the countryside in 1995, this brand is the number one fried chicken brand in Korea as of 2022.

The most iconic Korean side dish – Kimchi. This spicy, tangy, and slightly sweet fermented cabbage works wonders with the crispy fried chicken. It's like Batman and Robin, a dynamic and inseparable duo.

To make this dish, I soak the chicken pieces in milk for a couple of hours, but it's not absolutely necessary. This is a technique Koreans use to tenderize the meat and remove any gamey taste. The result is tender, juicy, and flavorful fried chicken.

Beer! The beer's crispness helps cut through the richness of the fried chicken while also providing an extra layer of warmth. This classic pairing has been around for decades in Korea; Koreans call it "Chimaek," a portmanteau of two words "chi" ("chicken") and "maekju" ("beer").

Unlike most other fried chicken recipes, Korean fried chicken is often double-fried. The chicken is typically fried the first time to cook it and evaporate water from the skin, then fried yet again to brown and crisp it quickly while avoiding overcooking the meat.

The spicy gochujang sauce is made using a mixture of gochujang paste (<– affiliate link), honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, garlic and ginger that's been bubbled together until sticky and syrupy. Then we fry the chicken until golden and crispy.

The double frying process allows the chicken to absorb less oil and results in a less greasy taste than other fried chicken recipes. The first fry cooks the chicken through, while the second fry creates the desired crunch.

Preheat your air fryer to 375°F. Place the chicken in the air fryer basket and cook it for 3-5 minutes until it's heated through and crispy. If the chicken is saucy, brush on a little more sauce and put it back into the air fryer for an additional 2-3 minutes to warm up the sauce.