Chef notes
Starting close to home, this Fujimi Crispy Chicken is actually inspired by my Fujimi obachan (my maternal grandma), right down to the soy-garlic-and-sake marinade, as well as her signature sweet-and-sour scallion sauce. It was something that I grew up eating. Fujimi is the name of her town in Nagano, not far from Minowa. I'm always very proud to serve this dish.
Ingredients
- 2 cups rice vinegar
- 1 cup mirin
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup white soy sauce
- 2 scallions, finely chopped
- 1½ teaspoons sambal
- 1½ teaspoons chopped fresh ginger
- 1/2 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 tablespoon potato starch
- 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
- 1/4 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon mirin
- 1 teaspoon sake
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1/2 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite- size chunks
- frying oil, preferably canola
- 1/2 cup potato starch
- Sweet-and-Sour Scallion Sauce, to serve (recipe above)
Preparation
For the Sweet-and-Sour Scallion Sauce:
1.In a medium saucepan, combine the vinegar, mirin, sugar, soy sauce, scallions, sambal, ginger and garlic. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Turn off the heat and let cool.
2.Transfer to an airtight glass container, cover and refrigerate overnight.
3.Return the sauce to a pot, heat it over medium-low heat, stir in the potato starch, then remove from the heat and let cool. Pour into an airtight glass container. Seal the container and store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
For the chicken:
1.In a medium bowl, whisk together the ginger, garlic, mirin, sake and soy sauce. Add the chicken and marinate for a couple of hours in the refrigerator.
2.Fill a high-sided large saucepan with oil to a depth of 3 to 5 inches and heat over high heat to 350 F.
3.Toss the marinated chicken thighs in the potato starch. Add the chicken to the hot oil and deep-fry until crispy and cooked through, around 4 to 5 minutes. Place on skewers and serve with Sweet-and-Sour Scallion Sauce.
