Korean Fried Chicken Salad
The crispiest, crunchiest Korean Fried Chicken Salad! With a bright and tangy persimmon vinaigrette to make it extra special. Make this absolutely delicious Korean-inspired salad that's chock-full of fresh, vibrant flavors. And the crispiest Korean fried chicken ever!
Servings: 2 as main salad, 4 as side
Calories: 1067kcal
Equipment
- Dutch oven
- candy thermometer
- Cooling rack
- rimmed sheet pan
Ingredients
Dressing:
- 2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
- 2 Tbsp Persimmon Vinegar (can be subbed with apple vinegar, rice vinegar, or white wine vinegar)
- 2 Tbsp Sugar
- 1 Tbsp Sesame Oil
- 1 Tbsp Sesame seeds toasted
- 1 Tbsp Grapeseed oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 chili peppers fresno or jalapeno, minced
Salad
- 1 large head romaine hearts chopped
- 2 mini cucumbers sliced thinly
- 1-2 Persimmons peeled and sliced thinly
Chicken
- 4 boneless chicken thighs with skin preferably
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp Mirin/Mirim or Korean sweet cooking wine (can be subbed with sake)
- 1 egg white
- 3/4 cup Potato starch can be subbed with corn starch
Instructions
- Marinate chicken. Add chicken thighs to bowl with soy sauce and mirin. Mix well and set aside.
- Make vinaigrette. In a glass jar, add soy sauce, persimmon vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, sesame seeds, grapeseed oil, minced garlic, and minced chili peppers. Set aside.
- Prep chicken. To the marinated chicken, add egg white and potato starch. Dredge the chicken thighs until well coated with beading from the potato starch and liquid.
- Deep fry 1st time. Heat a Dutch oven with 2 inches oil (grapeseed oil or vegetable oil) over medium heat until a thermometer hits 350F. Add chicken thighs in batches, making sure not to crowd the pan. Deep fry until golden and crispy, about 4-5 minutes. Remove and set aside on cooling rack fitted over a sheet pan. Make sure to flip the chicken about halfway through at the 2 minute mark.
- Deep fry 2nd time. Cool chicken briefly and deep fry again, about 1-2 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- Assemble salad. In a large shallow bowl, add romaine hearts, cucumbers, and persimmons. Shake vinaigrette to emulsify and drizzle all over. Toss the greens with tongs.
- Add fried chicken. Slice Korean fried chicken into bite-sized strips and add directly on top of the assembled salad.
- Serve. Enjoy immediately!
Video
Notes
Additional Tips:
- Set up a deep frying station. To make deep frying easier at home, set up a deep frying station: a dutch oven, candy thermometer, and cooling rack fitted over a sheet pan. The dutch oven makes the best deep frying vessel as the high walls prevent the oil from splashing over and the cast iron is a great heat conductor. The candy thermometer (affiliate) helps to accurately gauge the oil temperature. And the cooling rack fitted over a sheet pan prevents soggy chicken after it's fried. Also, a metal strainer and tongs are helpful tools when frying the chicken.
- Double fry the chicken! The key to creating extra-crispy fried chicken. The second fry is only 1-2 minutes and ensures the chicken stays extra crispy and crackly.
- Adjust spice level. Feel free to adjust the spicy level to your preference. I include 2 chili peppers and their seeds in the vinaigrette, which is only moderately spicy. To make it less spicy, do not include the seeds. Or, swap with red bell pepper instead.
Nutrition
Calories: 1067kcal | Carbohydrates: 101g | Protein: 47g | Fat: 54g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 17g | Monounsaturated Fat: 20g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 221mg | Sodium: 1810mg | Potassium: 1553mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 412IU | Vitamin C: 61mg | Calcium: 147mg | Iron: 6mg