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Chicken Nanban

This ultimate Chicken Nanban recipe was perfected after visiting renowned restaurants and extensive recipe testing. The harmony of crispy, juicy chicken and rich tartar sauce makes it an excellent pairing with drinks. Please give this masterpiece a try!

📖Cooking Basics

yaki（ramen）

miso（ramen）

Steps

Bring chicken thigh to room temperature before cooking.
🕒 01:17
Place Mirin (Sweet Rice Wine) 1 tbsp in a heatproof container and microwave for 40 seconds to evaporate the alcohol.
🕒 01:27
Add Sugar 1 tbsp to the heated Mirin and dissolve while hot.
🕒 01:43
Add Soy Sauce 1 tbsp and Vinegar 1 tbsp and mix. This is the completed sweet and sour sauce. [The Key!] Achieving a balance that is not too sour or too sweet creates the best sweet and sour sauce.
🕒 01:53
Finely mash 1 Boiled egg with a fork. [The Key!] Using boiled egg creates a firm texture and enhances the flavor. Mash thoroughly so it coats everything easily.
🕒 02:20
To the mashed egg, add Mayonnaise 2 tbsp, Sugar 1/2 tsp, and Vinegar 1 tsp.
🕒 02:49
Add Whiskey 1 tsp (or 1 tsp of reduced Mirin) and mix well. [The Key!] Adding 12-year-old Reserve Whiskey adds a rich aroma, making it a luxurious dish. Finishing the tartar sauce with a thick consistency prevents it from blending too much with the sweet and sour sauce, allowing each flavor to be distinct.
🕒 03:07
Refrigerate the prepared tartar sauce.
🕒 04:10
Pour Frying oil 200ml into a frying pan. [The Key!] This is a generous amount of oil for shallow frying, but it prevents uneven cooking and results in beautifully fried chicken, making it harder to fail. The oil should be enough to half-submerge the chicken.
🕒 04:14
Prepare plenty of Flour in a large bowl. [The Key!] Using plenty of flour prevents common issues like lumps in the coating or uneven application, and creates a crispy texture.
🕒 04:50
Prepare 1 Beaten egg and whisk until the egg white clumps disappear. [The Key!] Adding the egg, normally used for coating, to the marinade helps maintain crispiness while allowing the sweet and sour sauce to adhere better.
🕒 05:21
Trim excess skin and bloodline from the chicken thigh.
🕒 06:26
Pierce the tendons in the center of the thigh firmly with the tip of your knife to cut them. Pierce thicker parts as well. [The Key!] Cutting the tendons makes the meat tender when eaten.
🕒 07:03
Cut the chicken thigh in half lengthwise, then into bite-sized pieces (8-10 pieces). [The Key!] Since the sauce is not overly salty, cut into slightly larger bite-sized pieces to allow the sauce to coat them easily.
🕒 07:21
Place the cut chicken pieces in a bowl.
🕒 07:42
Season the chicken with Salt 2 pinches and black pepper (to taste).
🕒 08:08
Add Cooking Sake (Rice Wine) 1 tbsp and knead thoroughly until the liquid is absorbed. [The Key!] Simple seasoning maximizes the deliciousness of the sweet and sour sauce. When kneading, always use your left hand (if right-handed) to prevent the transfer of germs to other utensils.
🕒 08:35
Add half of the beaten egg (1/2 egg portion) to the chicken and knead again. [The Key!] The egg coating acts as a binder, allowing the sweet and sour sauce to be absorbed better. Reuse the remaining beaten egg for miso soup or other dishes.
🕒 08:59
While stretching the chicken skin firmly with your left hand, place the chicken pieces into the bowl of Flour, two at a time.
🕒 09:31
Coat the chicken pieces thoroughly with flour.
🕒 09:41
Shake off excess flour with tongs and place the chicken pieces skin-side down in the frying pan. [The Key!] Frying skin-side down results in crispy, delicious skin. Do not skimp on the flour; coat the pieces evenly.
🕒 09:53
Heat the frying pan over low to medium heat until the oil starts to sizzle gently.
🕒 10:43
Over low to medium heat, fry the chicken for 4 minutes. [The Key!] Slow heating from cold oil allows the chicken to cook through to the center. Once the bottom starts to set, gently separate it with chopsticks and let it cook without flipping immediately.
🕒 11:40
After 2 minutes, flip the chicken pieces once. [The Key!] Cooking slowly over low heat to the center is the key to successfully shallow-frying.
🕒 12:05
In the last minute, flip the chicken pieces again.
🕒 12:27
After 4 minutes, increase the heat to medium and fry for approximately 2 minutes until the surface is crispy. [The Key!] After increasing the heat to medium, gently rotate the chicken pieces like making takoyaki to expose them to air, which helps the surface crisp up.
🕒 12:57
Once the coating is crispy, reduce the heat to low to medium, drain the oil thoroughly from the smaller pieces first, and transfer them to a rack. [The Key!] Be careful to drain the oil well, otherwise the coating will become soggy.
🕒 13:46
Quickly dip the hot chicken pieces into the sweet and sour sauce and arrange them on a plate. [The Key!] Do not soak for too long, as the coating will become mushy; just a quick dip is sufficient.
🕒 14:40
Drizzle a small amount of sweet and sour sauce over the top, then spoon on the tartar sauce to finish. [The Key!] If the tartar sauce is too thick, you can thin it out by adding a little soy milk or milk.
🕒 14:54