Making Chicken Karaage at Home

Karaage is a Japanese dish where meat or vegetables are coated in potato starch and deep fried. Chicken is commonly used as the main protein. Making Karaage, or Japanese fried chicken, at home is not too difficult. You can make Karaage in your own kitchen by following the below recipe.

Karaage Ingredients for Serving 2 People

•  2 large chicken breasts
•  2 tbsp sake
•  2 tsp mirin
•  4 tbsp soy sauce
•  2 cloves minced garlic or 1 tsp of pre-minced garlic
•  2 tsp grated or ground ginger 
•  1.5 cups potato starch 

Ready in Approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes
Preparation: 20 minutes
Marinating: 1 hour
Cooking: 25 minutes

Karaage ingredients

Preparation Steps
1. Cut the chicken breasts into bitesize pieces.
2. Put the bitesize pieces of chicken in a plastic storage zipper bag.
3. Mix the sake, mirin, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger in a bowl. 
4. Pour the marinade mixture in the plastic bag containing the chicken.
5. Seal the plastic bag and then shake it for 30 seconds. 
6. Lay the plastic bag flat in the refrigerator and let it sit for 1 hour.

Chicken marinating

Cooking Steps
1. Remove the plastic bag from the refrigerator.
2. Heat oil in a pot or deep fryer over medium heat. 
3. While oil is heating, spread out the potato starch on a flat kitchen dish.
4. Coat each piece of chicken in the potato starch. 

Frying chicken

5. Fry the coated chicken for about 4 minutes until it is golden brown and cooked thoroughly. Flip the chicken pieces halfway through to ensure they cook evenly.
6. Put the cooked pieces on a plate or serving dish with a paper towel to soak up any extra oil. 
7. Serve with rice, cooked vegetables, or by itself. ​

Karaage out of the pot

Cooking Tips

•  Potato starch can be found at Asian food markets.
•  After coating a piece of chicken, shake off any excess potato starch before frying.
•  Ensure there is enough oil in a pot or deep fryer to fully submerge the chicken. 

Karaage with rice