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Sammy’s Crispy Chicken with Kimchi Dressing
Published 20 Oct, 2021Sammy’s Crispy Chicken with Kimchi Dressing
” Kimchi is one of my favourite Korean ingredients. I love eating it on its own but I also like cooking with it. I hope you’ll enjoy it in my dressing for this delicious crispy chicken recipe.”
Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 lemon
- Small bunch of chives
- ¾ cup of labneh or plain Greek yoghurt
- 2 large skinless chicken breasts OR 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 2 cups of kimchi plus 3 tablespoons of the kimchi brine/juice
- 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons of onion powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoons of cayenne pepper
- Salt
- ½ cup of mayonnaise
- 2 cups of vegetable oil
- 2 cups of bread crumbs
- ½ a White cabbage
Method:
Marinate the Chicken:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together ¼ cup of labneh/Greek yoghurt with 3 tablespoons of the kimchi brine, the onion powder and cayenne pepper.
- Part 2 chicken breasts, dry and slice each in half lengthways to create 2 thin cutlets. Season the cutlets with salt (2 teaspoons) and transfer to the marinade, turning to coat fully. Marinate the chicken for at least 15 minutes at room temperature – but ideally for 8 hours in the fridge!
Kimchi Ranch Dressing:
- In a small bowl which together ½ cup of mayonnaise, the remaining onion powder and ½ cup of labneh/Greek yoghurt.
- Finely grate the garlic and zest of half of a lemon into the mixture. Cut the lemon into wedges and set aside for later.
- Thinly slice half of the chives and stir them into the ranch dressing. Slice the remaining chives – as a match stick length roughly – and reserve for later.
- Finely chop ¾ cup of Kimchi and stir into the ranch dressing. If it is a bit thick you can add a few drops of water to get to the right consistency. Season with salt as required.
Getting Ready to Fry:
- Heat 2 cups of the oil in a large saucepan (wok works well) over a medium heat – the oil should be about 4cms deep. The oil will need to reach about 200C – if you have a cooking thermometer you can check occasionally and adjust the heat to maintain the right temperature. If you don’t have a thermometer – just throw a few pieces of bread crumbs into the oil – if they sizzle immediately you are about there!
Bread the Chicken:
- Place 2 cups of panko in a medium bowl. Working one at a time dip each chicken cutlet into the bread crumbs and use your fingers to press and pack the bread crumbs onto the chicken – until very well coated. Transfer to a plate.
Fry the Chicken:
- Have a plate ready with some paper towels on it. Once the oil is at the right temperature fry the chicken cutlets until deeply golden brown all over – you’ll need to flip the chicken halfway through – it will take about 3 to 5 minutes per side. Do this one at a time (don’t overcrowd the wok/pan as you’ll bring down the temperature of the oil too fast and the chicken won’t fry properly).
- Transfer the chicken to your paper lined plate and season well with salt. Transfer the cutlets to a chopping board and slice across the grain into 1.5cm thick pieces.
To serve:
- Shred the cabbage.
- Spread some Kimchi ranch on each plate, place some shredded cabbage on each plate – add the chicken pieces and the remaining Kimchi, top with the reserved chives and serve a little extra ranch alongside.
- Serve alongside a nice cold beer!