Best Korean Fried Chicken Recipe (Chimaek)

Step 1

Combine chicken wings, pureed ginger, rice wine, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl; toss well together and set aside for 10 minutes.

Step 2

Put diced onion, garlic, and rice wine in a mini blender and process until smooth.

Step 3

In a small sauce pan, combine all the sauce ingredients and pour in the onion garlic puree; mix well. Bring the sauce to boil until it bubbles up and thickens slightly, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. The sauce will thicken as it cools.

Step 4

Mix cornstarch and baking powder in a large plastic bag. Add the chicken wings and shake them well to coat. Shake off extra coating from the chicken wings.

Step 5

For the first fry: Heat oil in a wok or skillet over medium-low heat, to reach about 330˚F. Drop the chicken wings, shaking off the extra cornstarch coating, into the oil, and deep-fry for 3-4 minutes. The oil temperature shouldn’t be too hot and the chicken will fry slowly. If the oil bubbles vigorously, reduce the temperature to low.

Step 6

For the second fry: When all the batches of the first deep fry are finished, raise the heat to medium, about 350˚F. Drop the chicken again into the hot oil and deep-fry until the coating turns a deep golden brown, about 1-2 minutes. Adjust the heat if it browns too quickly. Shake off the excess oil from the chicken and place them on a wire rack to allow the remaining oil to drip off the chicken.

Step 7

Brush or coat with sauce: Using a pastry brush, apply sauce on the hot chicken wings. Alternately, you can pour the sauce over the chicken and toss them to coat. Garnish chicken wings with toasted sesame seeds or finely chopped nuts. Serve these wings with your favorite cold beverage.