Tori no Tatsuta-age (Japanese Fried Chicken)

Name: Tori no Tatsuta-age (Japanese Fried Chicken)
Total time: 40 min
Yield: Serves 2
Ingredients: Boneless chicken thigh 1 (about 300 g); Ginger (tube paste is OK) 1 tsp; Soy sauce 1 1/2 tbsp; Sake (Japanese rice wine) 1 tbsp; Potato starch (katakuriko) 4 tbsp; Vegetable oil About 150 ml

🍱 For a bento

Serves 2 · About 40 min (15 min of this is just letting it sit in the sauce)
Chicken seasoned with soy sauce and ginger, coated in potato starch and shallow-fried in a little oil in a frying pan. The coating is whitish and crispy.

① Cut the chicken→② Season the chicken→③ Coat with potato starch→④ Shallow-fry→⑤ Drain the oil

What to buy

Meat

Boneless chicken thigh1 (about 300 g)

Vegetables

Ginger (tube paste is OK)1 tsp

Check what you already have

Soy sauce1 1/2 tbspSake (Japanese rice wine)1 tbspPotato starch (katakuriko)4 tbspVegetable oilAbout 150 ml

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How to make it

Cut the chicken

About 5 min

Pat the chicken with paper towels to dry it
On the cutting board, cut into about 8 equal pieces (each about 4 cm)

How to tell it's doneThe pieces are about the same size. If any are big, cut them in half.

Season the chicken

Mix, then let sit 15 min

In a bowl, mix 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp sake and 1 tsp ginger
Add the chicken and rub it in with your hands
Cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge for 15 minutes

How to tell it's doneThe surface of the chicken is soy-sauce colored all over.

Coat with potato starch

About 3 min

Lightly drain the liquid from the bowl (throw the liquid away)
Put 4 tbsp potato starch in another bowl (or a plastic bag), add the chicken and coat all over
Let it sit like that 2–3 minutes

How to tell it's doneThe starch is a little damp, with white powder left in spots, so it looks patchy.

Shallow-fry

Medium heat3 min per side

Put about 150 ml vegetable oil (5 mm–1 cm deep) in a frying pan (20–24 cm wide) and heat over medium heat
Check the oil temperature. Put dry cooking chopsticks in the oil. When small bubbles fizz from the tips, it's hot enough to add (about 170°C). If there are almost no bubbles, it's not hot enough yet
Add the chicken skin side down, with space between pieces. If it does not all fit, do it in 2 batches
Shallow-fry 3 minutes without touching, turn with cooking chopsticks, and fry 3 minutes more

How to tell it's doneBoth sides are light golden brown, and the white powdery parts are crisp and hard.

Be carefulOil splatters, so gently lay the chicken in from the near side to the far side. Do not leave while shallow-frying. Stay in front of the stove until you turn off the heat.

Drain the oil and check

Heat offLet sit 3 min

Take out onto a rack or a plate lined with paper towels and let sit 3 minutes to drain the oil (the heat reaches the inside)
If you fry in 2 batches, check the oil temperature again with cooking chopsticks before the second batch
Serve

ReadyCut the biggest piece: the inside is white, not pink, and the juice is clear (if red juice comes out, put it back in the oil and shallow-fry 1–2 minutes).

Be carefulLet the used oil cool in the pan. Do not move it while hot.

📚 Learn more about this dish

🥬 Ingredient guide

Katakuriko (potato starch)Shoga (ginger)Shoyu (soy sauce)Chicken thigh

🔪 Cutting & cooking tips

Heat levels (high, medium, low)

If it didn't work out

The coating came offYou moved it right after adding in step 4. Do not touch it for 3 minutes.

The coating is soggyYou added it before the oil was hot enough, or added too many at once. Fry in 2 batches.

Pink insidePut it back in the oil and shallow-fry 1–2 minutes. Next time, cut the pieces the same size.

The flavor is weakNot seasoned long enough. Let it sit at least 15 minutes.

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Made by YUU, a teen who loves cooking → About me