This is a great dish that can be served as a starter or a main with salad and jasmine sticky rice. I normally double up on the sauce so I can use it later as a marinate for my BBQ meat. Gochujang is hard to substitute as it has a very unique flavour, but it’s readily available in specialist food stores or even Amazon, so make sure you purchase in advance.
Chicken
750g boneless chicken thighs
3 garlic cloves
15g fresh root ginger, peeled
70g plain flour
30g cornflour
1tsp baking powder
2tsp fine sea salt
¼ tsp ground black pepper
vegetable oil, for deep frying
Sauce
30g gochujang sauce
50g light brown sugar
60g rice vinegar
60g honey
30g tomato puree
20g dark soy sauce
10g sesame oil
6 garlic cloves
10g fresh root ginger
1 tbsp sesame seeds, for sprinkling
2 spring onions, thinly sliced for sprinkling
Method:
Finely chop the garlic and ginger and add to the rest of the dried ingredients, coat the chicken thighs in the mix and then transfer to the fridge for 2-4 hours.
For the sauce, finely chop the remaining garlic and ginger and add all the other ingredients to a pan, except from the sesame seeds and spring onions. Heat for 10 minutes on medium and then transfer to a bowl and keep warm.
Fry the chicken thighs in batches of 4-5 for 12 minutes or so until the meat is cooked through then transfer onto kitchen roll to drain off any excess oil, then place on a plate in the oven to keep warm until all the chicken is cooked. Coat the chicken in the sauce and then sprinkle with spring onions and sesame seeds and you’re ready to serve.
Gary Townsend is head chef at One Devonshire Gardens by Hotel du Vin, Glasgow. See www.hotelduvin.com or phone 0141 378 0385 to book.
Twitter @Chefgtownsend
Instagram- @chef.g.townsend
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