Soy Garlic Korean Fried Chicken

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Double-fried chicken wings and drumettes with a shatteringly light potato-starch crust, finished with a soy, brown sugar, garlic and rice vinegar glaze cooked down to syrup. Because the glaze is reduced and brushed on instead of tossed, the crust stays audibly crisp right through the last piece.

Ingredients

• 2.5 lb chicken wings, split into flats and drumettes (or 2 lb drumettes)
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp dry sherry or mirin
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger

• 3/4 cup potato starch
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 6 tbsp cold water or vodka, plus more as needed
• 6 cup neutral oil for frying (peanut, canola or vegetable)

• 1 tbsp neutral oil
• 8 cloves garlic, finely minced (about 3 tbsp)
• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 2 tbsp honey or rice syrup
• 3 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 1 tsp gochujang (optional, for warmth)

• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• Pickled daikon or radish cubes, for serving (optional)

Instructions

1. Pat the chicken very dry with paper towels. Toss in a bowl with 1 tbsp soy sauce, the sherry or mirin, 1 tsp salt, the black pepper and 1 tsp grated ginger. Let sit at room temperature 20 minutes, or refrigerate up to 4 hours.
2. Make the glaze while the chicken marinates: heat 1 tbsp neutral oil in a small saucepan over medium-low. Add the minced garlic and 1 tsp ginger and cook, stirring constantly, 60–90 seconds, just until fragrant and pale gold — do not let the garlic brown or the glaze will turn bitter.
3. Add the soy sauce, brown sugar, honey, rice vinegar, water and gochujang if using. Bring to a simmer and cook at a lively bubble over medium-low for 10–14 minutes, stirring occasionally, until reduced by about half and syrupy enough to coat the back of a spoon and leave a clear trail. It should measure roughly 3/4 cup. Stir in the sesame oil, then set aside off heat; it will thicken further as it cools.
4. Whisk the potato starch, flour, baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt in a wide bowl. Add 6 tbsp cold water (or vodka) and whisk to a thin, cream-like batter — it should coat a finger translucently, not thickly. Add water 1 tsp at a time if too thick.
5. Pour 2 inches of oil into a heavy Dutch oven or wide pot and heat to 325°F (160°C) on a clip-on thermometer. Set a wire rack over a sheet pan nearby.
6. Drain any liquid from the chicken. Dip pieces into the batter, let the excess run off for a few seconds, and lower into the oil. Fry in 2 or 3 batches of no more than 8 pieces, keeping the oil between 300 and 325°F, for 8–9 minutes until pale blond and cooked through. Transfer to the rack and rest at least 10 minutes (up to 1 hour at room temperature).
7. Raise the oil to 375°F (190°C). Return the chicken in batches and fry a second time for 3–4 minutes, until deeply golden, hard-crisp and blistered; the pieces should sound hollow when tapped and register 175°F internally. Drain on the rack — never on paper towels, which steam the crust.
8. Warm the glaze for 30 seconds over low heat to loosen it to brushing consistency. Working on the rack, brush each piece with glaze on all sides using a pastry brush or silicone brush — enough to lacquer, not to pool. Use about half the glaze and serve the rest in a bowl for dipping.
9. Pile onto a platter, shower with sesame seeds and scallions, and serve immediately with pickled radish and cold beer. The chicken stays crisp about 20 minutes; glaze in batches if you're serving in waves.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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