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Chicken Tempura is a regional favorite in Oita Prefecture of Kyushu region in Japan. With a crispy and fluffy batter on the outside and juicy and tender meat inside, this Chicken Tempura is best enjoyed by dipping with karashi mustard ponzu sauce.
Last summer our family took a week-long trip to Hiroshima and Kyushu. As soon as our train arrived at the station in Beppu, Oita, I had one food in mind that I wanted to try and that was Chicken Tempura called Toriten (とり天) – Oita’s specialty food!
Watch How to Make Chicken Tempura (Toriten)
Watch “Chicken Tempura” Video on YouTube
What is Chicken Tempura?
If you never heard of “chicken tempura” before, you’re not alone. I even thought chicken tempura is a westernized version of tempura. Invented at a restaurant in Oita prefecture, Chicken Tempura, or Toriten (とり天) in Japanese, is a popular food mostly enjoyed in this region.
I lived in Japan for 20 years before coming to the United States, and I go back to Japan to visit my family almost every year. However, I had never tried chicken tempura or even seen it on the menu anywhere until my trip to Oita.
As straightforward as the name implies, chicken tempura is tempura-style fried chicken. Chicken breast or thigh is cut into strips, marinated in soy sauce, garlic, and ginger mixture, coated in tempura batter, and deep-fried.
The big difference between chicken tempura and regular tempura is on the dipping sauce. Chicken tempura is often dipped in kabosu ponzu sauce with Japanese karashi hot mustard.
3 Easy Tips to Make Crispy yet Fluffy Chicken Tempura
Besides the actual deep-frying technique, there are a few things you can do to improve your tempura.
1. Use cake flour and mix with potato starch
Potato starch absorbs less moisture, which is why it keeps tempura batter crisp and retains the shape for a longer time. You can play around with the ratio of potato starch and flour.
If you can get hold of cake flour, I recommend using it as cake flour has less gluten which helps to make the batter crisp.
2. Don’t mix batter too much
Always mix the batter using chopsticks for only a few seconds to not more than 1 minute, leaving lumps in the mixture. Over-mixing the batter will result in the activation of wheat gluten, which causes the flour mixture to become chewy and dough-like when fried.
3. Keep the batter chilled
A cold batter is a must to achieve the unique fluffy and crisp tempura texture. Since gluten will be activated more at a warmer temperature, we want to avoid that. To keep the batter cool before frying, you can either chill all the ingredients (water, egg, and dry ingredients) or place a bowl in the ice water.
Chicken Tempura – Suggestions for Substitution
Chicken Breast: I usually prefer chicken thigh when it comes to fried chicken such as Karaage, but I really like the results of using chicken breast for chicken tempura. The majority of the chicken tempura served in Oita is also made with chicken breast. After giving it a try myself, I think chicken breast works best. The meat stays moist, juicy, and tender because it is well coated with tempura batter. However, if you insist to use chicken thigh, feel free to do so.
Ponzu Sauce: As I mentioned earlier, chicken tempura is commonly enjoyed with ponzu sauce instead of tempura dipping sauce. The citrus soy sauce cuts off the greasy taste and imparts a refreshing note to the deep-fried food. If you visit the Kyushu region, look out for Kabosu Ponzu (the bottle shown in the 2nd picture above). Kabosu (カボス), a type of Japanese citrus, is really hard to find outside of Japan. If you can’t find ponzu in a bottle at a Japanese/Asian grocery store, you can make it from scratch (so delicious, highly recommend!) or simply mix soy sauce with lemon juice (it doesn’t’ taste as good).
Karashi Mustard: This Japanese hot mustard is a mixture of crushed mustard seeds of Brassica juncea and horseradish. It is used as a condiment in oden, gyoza, and tonkatsu. Karashi is usually sold in powder form or paste form in tubes (see the pictures). It’s spicier and more potent than mild yellow mustard. The closest substitute would be English mustard and Chinese hot mustard powder.
Shredded Cabbage: Many of you asked about the shredded vegetable next to Tonkatsu, Miso Katsu, Ham Katsu, Gluten-Free Baked Chicken Katsu, Korokke, and Fried Oyster. It’s actually just shredded cabbage. In Japan, shredded cabbage is often served with deep-fried foods. I highly recommend this cabbage slicer – it makes such fine and fluffy shredded cabbage that I can eat half of the cabbage myself. We eat the shredded cabbage with dressings such as Sesame Dressing, Wafu Dressing, etc.
The next time you have a craving for fried chicken and are about to fire up your deep fryer, give this Chicken Tempura recipe a try! Your family (or dinner guests) may be surprised to learn about chicken tempura, but they would be very happy that you bring this Oita’s specialty to the dinner table.
Japanese Ingredient Substitution: If you want to look for substitutes for Japanese condiments and ingredients, click here.
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- ¾ lb boneless skinless chicken breast (320 g)
- 1 knob ginger
- 1 clove garlic
- freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp kosher/sea salt (I use Diamond Crystal; Use half for table salt)
- 1 tsp sake
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 large egg (50 g w/o shell)
- 1/3 cup cake flour (45 g)
- 1/3 cup potato starch/cornstarch (55 g)
- 1/3 cup water (75 ml)
- 3-4 cups neutral-flavored oil (vegetable, canola, etc) (for deep frying) (700-950 ml)
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Pound the chicken breast with a meat tenderizer. If you don’t own one, you can use the back of the knife. This helps to yield thinner and flatter piece of meat, so the meat cooks faster and more evenly (no more overcooking!).
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Cut the meat into roughly ¾" (2 cm)-wide and 3" (7.5 cm)-long strips.
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Grate 1 knob ginger and 1 garlic clove.
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Season the chicken with freshly ground black pepper, ¼ tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp sake, and 2 tsp soy sauce.
- Add the grated ginger and garlic and mix well with hands (rub the chicken with seasonings).
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Set a medium bowl over a large bowl with ice water in it. Add 1 egg and whisk well.
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With a fine-mesh sieve, sift the ⅓ cup (45 g) cake flour and ⅓ cup (55 g) potato or corn starch into the bowl with the egg.
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Gradually add ⅓ cup (75 ml) water and mix all together until just enough to combine (don’t over mix).
- Add the chicken pieces and coat well with the batter.
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Heat the 3-4 cups (700-950 ml) oil to 350 ºF (180 ºC) in a deep fryer (or in a medium-size pot). Add in only 2-3 pieces of battered chicken at one time. To prevent the temperature of the oil from decreasing, do not add too many cold chicken pieces at once. Deep fry each batch until crispy on the outside, about 4 minutes total, 2 minutes each side. Then repeat with another 2-3 pieces, until all pieces are cooked. Pick up tempura crumbs in the oil to keep your oil clean.
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Serve the Chicken Tempura with shredded cabbage (I use this cabbage slicer which yields thinly shredded cabbage) and ponzu with karashi mustard on the side.
Recipe by Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook. All images and content on this site are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without my permission. If you’d like to share this recipe on your site, please re-write the recipe and link to this post as the original source. Thank you.
Hi Nami, can I use soda water or beer instead of water? Some recipe suggest cold sparkling water or beer for the batter liquid.
Hi Yuni! Sure, it’s more western technique, but it makes the batter crispy and airy. Enjoy the recipe! 🙂
Hi Nami, thank you so much for your recipes which enable me and my family to cook, enjoy and appreciate the Japanese cuisine. However, all along I have tried to avoid oil frying at home, not because I do not like frying food but because I don’t know how to deal with the oil afterwards. What do you usually do about it, or do you any suggestions if I don’t want to dumb it after just using for once.
Hi Cindy! Thank you so much for reading my blog and trying out my recipes. Here are two of my suggestions.
https://www.justonecookbook.com/how_to/how-to-deep-fry-food/
Let me know if you have more questions. 🙂
I can’t use sake and mirin as it contain alcohol.
I never taste them, so I can’t imagine what they taste like.
What can you suggest for their substitute?
Hi Ira! I just published a new post about sake and mirin. Could you read the post and let me know if you have any questions? 🙂
https://www.justonecookbook.com/sake-mirin/
I just noticed a chicken tempura dish at a local Japanese restaurant and had to look it up to see if this was just some strange westernized thing, or something people actually do in Japan, because I’ve never heard of it being done before. I’m actually a bit surprised it is a food that is largely limited to Oita because chicken itself seems to be quite popular and lends itself well to breading and deep frying. Then again, as most Japanese restaurants around here have no real connection to Japan, it is quite possible they have no idea that this is a regional speciality and decided to do it because they feel it will go over well with the people’s palettes here.
Hi Travis! Your theory is interesting and could be true, especially if the chicken tempura was NOT served with ponzu. If it was regular tempura dipping sauce… maybe they just use chicken because it’s a common meat option here. 😀
Yeah it’s interesting that chicken tempura stay a regional food in Japan. I had never eaten chicken tempura whole my life in Japan (I came to the US when I was 20). I still don’t see chicken tempura in Tokyo area when I go out to eat. Japan has so many regional foods. Like a lot of foods in Nagoya are very unique and we don’t really get to eat that in Tokyo (or other parts of Japan). 🙂
Finally, I find the right ingredients and almost perfect ratio to make my own tempura. I usually use common ‘fried chicken’ recipe in every time I cook this menu, the taste is quite good but the texture awaaaaaaaaaay different. Thank you again for the recipe, moreover for the tips. Keep your amazing hard work. ????
Hi Damara! Thank you for your kind feedback. xo
nami this is EXCELLENT
Hi Linda! Thank you so much! 🙂
Hi, Nami.
What’s the difference between Toriten and Karaage? I still cannot figure it out.
Shuni
Hi Shuni! Toriten is chicken coated with tempura batter and deep-fried. Karaage is often marinated in soy sauce, ginger-based sauce first, and coated with just the flour (or mixture of potato starch) and deep-fried – no “batter”. Toriten is dipped in the sauce to enjoy, while karaage is enjoyed as it is (because it’s seasoned). It’s just a different way to prepare chicken. The similarity is both deep frying dish.
Thanks, Nami. But… I still don’t get it, what’s the difference between toriten and karaage.
You said, karaage is marinated in soy sauce, ginger-based sauce. Isn’t that similar to this toriten recipe written above?
You said, karaage is coated with just the flour (or mixture of potato starch). This toriten recipe also coats the chicken meat with flour and potato starch. What’s the difference?
You said karaage is deep-fried – no “batter”. However, in step 10 for this toriten recipe, you wrote: “Add the chicken pieces and coat well with the BATTER.”
You said karaage is enjoyed as it is because it’s seasoned. However, in step 5 for this toriten recipe, it’s written: “SEASON the chicken with freshly ground black pepper, ¼ tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp sake, and 2 tsp soy sauce”.
I don’t mean to argue, but I am really confuse. Even more confuse now….
Regards,
Shuni
Hi Shuni! The main difference is the batter part around the chicken. For Toriten, you dip chicken in the tempura batter (a mixture of flour and egg) and deep fry. So when you bite into the chicken, you have the thick coating around the chicken. After hours, this tempura batter coating gets soggy. Just like tempura.
For Karaage, you do not dip in the batter, the marinated (wet) chicken is dusted with flour and deep fried. When you bite, there is thin coating of flour but there is no thick coating around. After hours passed, karaage doesn’t get soggy and can still remain the same.
Here are my answers to your question:
S: You said, karaage is marinated in soy sauce, ginger-based sauce. Isn’t that similar to this toriten recipe written above?
N: Yes, but karaage seasoning is definitely stronger considering it’s enjoyed straight (although some people dip in mayo etc).
S: You said, karaage is coated with just the flour (or mixture of potato starch). This toriten recipe also coats the chicken meat with flour and potato starch. What’s the difference?
N: Toriten is coated in the batter made of flour, corn/potato starch, egg, and water. This tempura batter is the key.
S: You said karaage is deep-fried – no “batter”. However, in step 10 for this toriten recipe, you wrote: “Add the chicken pieces and coat well with the BATTER.”
N: Karaage is dusted with flour but NOT dip in the batter (like pancake / tempura batter). And yes, in step 10 of toriten recipe, you put the chicken in the batter. Maybe you got confused here? Toriten uses batter, not Karaage.
S: You said karaage is enjoyed as it is because it’s seasoned. However, in step 5 for this toriten recipe, it’s written: “SEASON the chicken with freshly ground black pepper, ¼ tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp sake, and 2 tsp soy sauce”.
N: For toriten, we dip in ponzu sauce. For karaage, you eat it by itself, except for squeeze of lemon. Some people dip in mayo, but not all restaurants/home serve with mayo.
Think this way, (chicken) tempura and (chicken) karaage are different because they look different and prepared differently. Same chicken, same deep frying, but ingredients and method are slightly different. For example, karaage does not include any egg.
Hope it’s a bit clear? 🙂
Hi, Nami.
I get it now, what you mean by “batter”. Thank you. I have never realized that before.
I still don’t get it though, for “seasoning”. Through your first reply I understand that “tempura” including “toriten” is not seasoned, unlike karaage. Am I correct?
And what I understand again is, that seasoning is a process done before frying. Am I correct?
In step 5 for this toriten recipe, it’s written: “SEASON the chicken with freshly ground black pepper, ¼ tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp sake, and 2 tsp soy sauce”.
Toriten = tempura = no seasoning?
Toriten = Recipe Step 5 = seasoning? = No seasoning?
That’s what I meant to ask.
But anyway, okaylah, the batter thing is different. I get that. Naruhodo 😊
Regards,
Shuni
Hi Shuni! Here are my answers:
S: I still don’t get it though, for “seasoning”. Through your first reply I understand that “tempura” including “toriten” is not seasoned, unlike karaage. Am I correct?
N: Typically, tempura ingredients are not pre-seasoned, sometimes salt, sake if it’s for seafood etc. Chicken is not a typical tempura ingredient, which is why it’s considered a regional food in Oita. Just like any recipes, seasoning is really optional. There is no specific rule. So if you want to add soy sauce to your seasoning, it’s okay. Skip ginger, that’s okay. That’s where you define your recipe/food. So if you want to season just salt and pepper for chicken, that’s okay too.
S: And what I understand again is, that seasoning is a process done before frying. Am I correct?
N: You season the ingredient before and during the cooking. Sometimes you add salt, sugar, soy sauce etc during the cooking, and that’s seasoning too.
S: In step 5 for this toriten recipe, it’s written: “SEASON the chicken with freshly ground black pepper, ¼ tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp sake, and 2 tsp soy sauce”.
Toriten = tempura = no seasoning?
Toriten = Recipe Step 5 = seasoning? = No seasoning?
That’s what I meant to ask.
N: When it comes to Karaage vs Toriten difference, seasoning is not a dividing factor. How it’s prepared batter vs flour is the more obvious difference. If you don’t season/marinate the chicken for karaage, that’s REALLY rare (but someone may have a special way to make Karaage). But Toriten can be seasoned with simpler salt and pepper and that’s possible.
Hope it’s clear. 🙂