Popular Japanese appetizer with a delicious kick! This Chicken Karaage with Sweet Chili Sauce is bite-size chicken thighs deep-fried to a golden brown and coated in a delightful sweet chili sauce. You’d be bowled over by this sweet and spicy version of Japanese fried chicken.
This Chicken Karaage with Sweet Chili Sauce (スイートチリソースの唐揚げ) is a popular variation of chicken karaage in our household. The bite-size chicken thighs are deep-fried to perfection and coated with sweet chili sauce.
Chicken Karaage with A Twist
Now that my children are older, they have been enjoying more spicy food so I try to incorporate spicy condiments, sauces, and various spices into Japanese foods whenever I can. Even though Japanese food is not known as a cuisine laden with spices and spicy flavors, it is still fun to play with different seasonings and spice things up a little.
What is Sweet Chili Sauce?
There are a few brands of sweet chili sauce in the market and you can definitely use your favorite brand. The one that I always keep in my pantry is Mae Ploy Thai sweet chili sauce, also known as nam chim kai in Thailand. It has a slight heat to it, but I would not consider it spicy at all. So it’s perfect for someone who appreciates bolder flavor but is overly spicy. You can find Mae Ploy Thai sweet chili sauce being sold in bottles in major grocery stores or Asian grocery stores. If you’re tempted to make your own sweet chili sauce, you can follow the recipe in my Grilled Lemongrass Chicken post.
The sweet chili sauce comes in handy whenever you feel like adding a little kick to your dish or just to up the ante. The nice blend of mildly spicy and sweet flavors just makes everything better. The classic chicken karaage is commonly served with a wedge of lemon and some side condiments such as Japanese mayo for dipping. With the addition of the sweet and spicy sauce, the classic Japanese fried chicken is now packed a serious flavor punch and extra vibrancy.
Too Spicy for Children?
If you have small children who are not used to spicy food yet, you can serve the chicken karaage as it is, and then coat the rest of the karaage with sweet chili sauce for yourselves. For a more garlicky flavor of chicken karaage, you want to check out this recipe.
Chicken karaage is pretty tasty on its own already, but I am certain you will thoroughly enjoy this fun and zingy version as well. So head for the kitchen and make this Chicken Karaage with Sweet Chili Sauce tonight!
More Popular Chicken Recipes
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Chicken Karaage with Sweet Chili Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs (roughly 4 pieces)
- 2 Tbsp sake
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 knob ginger
- 1 cup potato starch or cornstarch (more or less)
- 3 cups neutral oil (for deep-frying)
- 2 green onions/scallions
- ¼ cup cilantro (coriander)
For the Sauce
- ½ cup sweet chili sauce (8 Tbsp)
- 2 Tbsp water
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Remove and discard extra fat and skin, and cut each of the 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs into 5 to 6 pieces, about 1½-inch (4-cm) pieces.
- Peel the skin of 1 knob ginger and grate it. Cut 2 green onions/scallions and ¼ cup cilantro (coriander) into small pieces.
- In a medium bowl, combine 2 Tbsp sake, 2 Tbsp soy sauce, and the grated ginger, and add the chicken pieces to marinate. Keep in the fridge for 30 minutes. Tip: You may have noticed already but in Japanese cooking, common marinade time is between 20 and 30 minutes to preserve the ingredient’s original taste.
- In the tray or bowl, prepare 1 cup potato starch or cornstarch. In a medium pot (update: I use this Staub 2.75 QT for deep-frying), heat 3 cups neutral oil to 340ºF (170ºC). Use a thermometer or wooden chopsticks to see if the oil is ready (See How to Deep-Fry Foods). Tip: You put a chopstick in the oil and when you see the bubbles around it, it’s ready!
- When the oil is hot, drain the chicken well from the marinade and coat each piece with the corn/potato starch. Make sure the chicken is all covered by the starch so when you put the chicken into the oil, it won’t splatter.
- Slowly place 4–6 chicken pieces into the wok (work with a few pieces at a time, so the oil temperature won’t drop quickly). Deep-fry the chicken for 90 seconds, or until the chicken is light golden color. Transfer the chicken to a wire rack or paper towel to drain excess oil. Let the chicken cook with remaining heat while you work on the rest of chicken.
- Once the chicken is all deep-fried for the first round, use a fine-mesh sieve to pick up crumbs to keep the oil clean. If you don‘t do this step, the crumbs get darker and then the oil gets darker. Increase the heat and bring the oil to 350ºF (180ºC). Deep-fry the chicken for the second time for 45 seconds or until crispy and golden brown.
- Transfer the chicken to a wire rack to drain the excess oil.
- In a frying pan, combine the sauce ingredients—½ cup sweet chili sauce and 2 Tbsp water.
- Add the green onion and cilantro, and mix over medium heat.
- When the sauce is bubbling, add the chicken and quickly coat well with the sauce. Don’t leave in the pan for no more than 15 seconds. Transfer to a serving plate.
To Store
- You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. However, the breading will not be crispy any longer.
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on January 5, 2011. The post has been updated with new images and content.
In the karate chicken with sweet chili sauce, do you use one cup of both corn starch and potato starch or either one is sufficient?
Hi Karen,
You may use cornstarch or potato starch. Either one is sufficient.
Thank you for trying this recipe!
I’ve just tried this and it was delicious!! I always have such a hard time deep frying but the instructions were so clear it ended up perfectly cooked and crispy. Thank you!
Hi Laura,
Thank you so much for trying this recipe and for your kind feedback. We are so glad to hear you enjoyed the dish! Thank you!
Can I bake this instead? I’m trying to avoid deep fried or any kinds of fried food for weight and health reasons. I love your recipes, I love your flavors, they’re natural, healthy and clean and would love to be able to transfer this recipe to the oven.
Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Hi kazy! I’ve attempted to make karaage in the oven but so far, I don’t like the result… I think the best choice for you to be air fryer, although I don’t have it to test with karaage… Sorry I wish I can help. 🙁
Unfortunately I don’t have an air fryer. I have limited space in my kitchen and it’s hard for me to store any of these new kitchen gadgets. But thanks for the response. Appreciate it.
Hi Kazy! No problem, I’m on the same page – I don’t own the air fryer for the same reason. 🙂
おいしかったです – it was delicious. I didn’t have fresh coriander, so used finely shredded basil leaves instead. I’ve recently started learning to cook Japanese foods. This is definitely one to add to my repertoire. Thankyou!
Hi Marian! よかった〜!!Thank you so much for trying this recipe. I’m glad to hear you liked it. Hope you enjoy cooking Japanese food at home!
I probably cut the chicken into sized bigger than the recipe said. To compensate, I triple fried the chicken to make it extra extra crunchy. The sauce with the green onions, cilantro, and Thai sweet chili sauce was super tasty!
Hi Nick! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for your kind feedback. 🙂
[…] 7. Chicken Karaage with Sweet Chili Sauce […]
[…] Chicken Karaage with Sweet Chili Sauce […]
May Ploy’s sauce is delicious. I just ran out and have to buy some more before I can try this.
Hi Richard! If you like the sweet chili sauce… you’ll love it! Hope you enjoy! 🙂
I made this tonight and my husband and I absolutely loved it! So very tasty!
Hi Candace! I’m so happy to hear you and your husband enjoyed this dish! Thank you for trying my recipe and for your kind feedback. xo
[…] Chicken Karaage with Sweet Chili Sauce […]
Yummy. In your other karaage recipe you also put garlic, sesame oil and sugar. Would those mix welll here? Or maybecthe sugar is overkill because the Thai sauce is sweet. Thank you!
Hi Lili! I wouldn’t add the sugar in this recipe for the reason you mentioned – the sauce is too sweet already but you can use other ingredients. 🙂 Thank you so much for your kind feedback!
I can’t wait to try this. I too thought Japanese fried chicken could use a special sauce. I was almost thinking of serving it with Ken’s ranch or Parmesan peppercorn cream dressing on the side. I enjoy so many of your recipes. You are one of my major influences the taught me how to cook Japanese/Japanese fusion meals. Thank you.
Hi Sakura-chan! Thanks for your kind words! I’m so happy to hear you tried so many of my recipes and that made my day! Hope you like this recipe – it’s quite addicting. 😀
Who knew karaage was so easy to make!! Just finished making some, waiting for it to cool before I try it! So excited! Thank you!!
Hi Emily! I hope you enjoyed this dish. Thank you for trying this recipe! 🙂
If I was going to freeze this recipe at what point would I do that?
Hi Dana! You will need to freeze AFTER Step 9. Let the fried chicken cool down, and put in the air-tight container and freeze. Defrost, put in oven toaster or oven to reheat until crispy outside and inside is warm. Then toss into the frying pan to coat the sauce. 🙂
Thank you very much Nami, now I can stop buying teriyaki sauce, I can now make my own. Thank you also for the chicken karage sweet and spicy recipe. I love it!
Hi Alan! I’m so happy to hear you’re making Teriyaki sauce and you like this recipe! Your kind feedback made me happy! 🙂
Dear Nami,
I do not have sake. Will it be okay to cook it without sake?
thank you
Hi fifi! Do you have dry sherry or Chinese rice wine? Or maybe white wine? Alcohol helps remove unwanted smell of chicken while it evaporates. 🙂 It’s a common technique we use for cooking Japanese.