crispy fry batter

Recipe video above. This recipe brings together a plethora of Asian cooking secrets for a crispy chicken that stays crispy for 4+ hrs even after tossing with sauce:1. Double coating - dredge in cornflour/cornstarch followed by batter2. Cold batter made with soda water = crispier chicken that&#039;s puffy and light, not dense and greasy3. Cornflour/cornstarch + flour batter - cornflour for ultra crispiness, flour for golden colour + baking powder lift4. Double fry for extra long lasting, thicker crispiness AND less greasy (Asian secret!)5. No-Soggy Sauce - glucose or corn syrup to make it &quot;candy like&quot; to stick on chicken crust rather than soaking in, plus NO WATER in the sauce.See Notes for make ahead (99% like freshly made).

Built-to-last CRISPY Honey Chicken

chicken

tbsp light soy sauce ((or all purpose, NOT dark soy))

Chinese cooking wine ((sub with soy))

tsp cornflour/cornstarch

cornflour/cornstarch

tbsp cornflour/cornstarch ((Note 8))

tbsp flour (, plain/all purpose)

tsp baking powder ((NOT baking soda))

salt (, kosher/cooking (halve for table salt))

vegetable oil ((or canola))

(100 grams) honey

corn

soy sauce ((or all purpose))

Chinese cooking wine ((or more soy sauce))

noodles

Sesame seeds, finely sliced green onions

Place batter mixing bowl in the fridge with the flour, baking powder and salt. (Helps keep batter cold = crispier chicken)

Recommended step for beginners:

Marinade: Mix Chicken and Marinade in a bowl. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Dust: Spread the 1/2 cup cornflour/cornstarch on a shallow plate. Scatter over about 8 to 10 chicken pieces, toss to coat, shake off excess, put on a plate. Repeat with all chicken.

Marinate &amp; Dust Chicken:

Rack: Place a rack on a tray (for draining, Note 3)

Heat oil: Fill small pot or large saucepan with 4cm / 1.7&quot; oil. Heat to 180°C/350°F on medium high stove (or until chicken starts sizzle straight away when dipped).

Make Cold Batter: Whisk together flour, cornflour/cornstarch, baking powder and salt. Pour in 7 tbsp soda water, then do minimum whisks just to combine (10 or so) - few lumps ok, better than whisking too much (changes coating texture).

Batter thickness: should fully coat chicken easily, not be see through, but not thick and heavy - see video at 44 seconds. Use extra water 1 teaspoon at a time to achieve right thickness.

Dredge: Drop 8 or so pieces of chicken into the batter. Turn to coat, then carefully place in oil.

Fry #1: Cook for 3 minutes until light golden and crispy - when you pick them up, you can tell it&#039;s very crispy.

Drain &amp; repeat: Place on rack, repeat with remaining chicken - I cook in 4 batches, don&#039;t crowd the pot, brings oil temperature down too much.

Cool chicken for 20 minutes (Note 4). Meanwhile, make Sauce.

Cold Batter &amp; Fry #1:

Place ingredients in a large saucepan over medium heat. Bring to simmer, then leave to simmer for 3 minutes.

Consistency should be like maple syrup (video at 1 min 11 sec). Turn off stove, place lid on to keep warm (when cool, gets too thick to toss chicken).

Honey Sauce:

Heat oil to 200°C/390°F.

Add in half the chicken (you can crowd the pot for Fry #2). Cook for 90 seconds until it changes from pale golden to very golden (but not dark golden, chicken will overcook), then remove onto rack. More golden = crispier chicken.

Repeat with remaining chicken. (Feel the chicken - you can tell it&#039;s built-to-last crispy!)

Fry #2 - for ultra crispy!

Tumble into saucepan with sauce, use rubber spatula to quick toss until coated with sauce. (Sauce starts thickening if you take too long, so be quick!)

Pile chicken up over crispy noodles (if using), scatter with sesame seeds and green onion and serve!

Toss in Sauce &amp; Serve:

At any point while oil is hot, drop wad of noodles into hot oil, wait 3 seconds until it puffs up, then remove with tongs.

Drain on paper towels, place on plate to top with chicken!

Puffy Crispy Noodles (optional):

Recipe video above. A recipe for old school Chinese restaurant style Honey Prawns! This recipe uses a proven method used in my Honey Chicken recipe for Honey Prawns that stays crispy hours even after coating in the sauce!1. Double coating - cornflour/cornstarch to seal in juices, followed by batter.2. Cold batter made with soda water = crispier coating that&#39;s puffy and light, not dense and greasy.3. Cornflour/cornstarch + flour batter - cornflour for ultra crispiness, flour for golden colour.4. Double fry for extra long lasting, thicker crispiness AND less greasy (Asian secret!).5. No-soggy Sauce - glucose or corn syrup to make it &quot;candy like&quot; to stick on the prawn crust rather than soaking in, plus NO WATER in the sauce.Note - the sauce is sweet. That&#39;s the way it&#39;s supposed to be! But not as sickly sweet as many Chinese restaurants tend to be. Please do not try to change the sauce as it has been formulated to prevent making the batter soggy.

Honey Prawns - stays crispy for ages!

tsp kosher/cooking salt ((halve for table salt))

tbsp cornflour/cornstarch ((Note 2))

tbsp flour (, plain/all-purpose)

vegetable

tbsp light soy sauce ((or all-purpose))

Chinese cooking wine ((or mirin))

Salt prawns: Mix prawns with salt. (Don&#39;t do this ahead, salt makes prawns sweat = compromise crispy coating!)

Dust: Place 1/2 cup cornflour/cornstarch in a bowl. Dip prawn in, shake off excess then put on a plate. Repeat with all prawns.

Season and dust prawns:

Chill dry ingredients: Whisk together flour, cornflour/cornstarch, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Place in fridge while oil heats up. (Helps keep batter cold, cold batter = crispier prawns)

Heat oil: Fill small pot or large saucepan with 4cm / 1.7&quot; oil. Heat to 160°C/320°F on medium high stove.

Make cold batter: When the oil is near target temp, add soda water into the dry ingredients. Then do the minimum whisks to just combine (10 or so) - a few lumps ok, better than whisking too much (changes coating texture).

Batter thickness: Should fully coat prawns easily, not be see-through, but not thick and heavy. See video at 38 seconds for cues. Use extra soda water 1 teaspoon at a time to achieve right thickness.

Dredge: Holding a prawn by the tail, dip into the batter then hold up for a 2 seconds to let the excess batter drip off. Then carefully place in oil. Repeat with another 5 prawns (6 per batch).

3 minutes Fry #1: Cook for 3 minutes until light golden and crispy. When you pick them up, you can tell it&#39;s very crispy.

Drain and repeat: Place prawns on a tray with paper towels. Repeat with remaining prawns. I cook in 4 batches. Don&#39;t crowd the pot as it brings oil temperature down too much.

Cool prawns for 20 minutes (Note 5). Meanwhile, make Sauce.

Cold batter and fry #1:

Simmer: Place ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to simmer, turn down stove to medium low then leave to simmer for 3 minutes.

Syrupy consistency: The consistency should be like maple syrup (see video). Turn off stove, place lid on to keep warm (when cool, it gets too thick to toss prawns in it).

3 minutes Fry #2: Place half the prawns in oil (you can crowd the pot for Fry #2). Cook for 3 minutes or until it changes from pale golden to very golden, then remove to a paper towel-lined plate. You can tell by touching that it&#39;s built-to-last crispy! More golden = crispier (but don&#39;t overcook the prawns!) Repeat with remaining prawns.

Fry #2 – for ultra-crispy!

Quickly toss: Transfer prawns to a metal bowl then pour over Honey Sauce. Quickly toss with rubber spatula to coat prawns in sauce. (Sauce starts thickening if you take too long, so be quick!)

Garnish: Pile prawns over crispy rice noodles (if using), scatter with sesame seeds, green onion and serve!

Sauce and serve:

At any point while oil is hot, drop a wad of noodles into hot oil, wait 3 seconds until it puffs up, then remove with tongs.

Drain on paper towels, place on plate. Top with prawns! (Note: Crispy noodles stays crispy &quot;forever&quot; so you can do this well ahead. Not for eating - is flavourless.)

Puffy crispy rice noodles (optional):

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Built-to-last CRISPY Honey Chicken

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Top 2 crispy fry batter recipes from across the web

The most viewed crispy fry batter recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Built-to-last CRISPY Honey Chicken

Honey Prawns - stays crispy for age...

The most viewed crispy fry batter recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine