crispy tempura chicken drizzled with a spicy wasabi sriracha mayo topped with green onions, cilantro and sliced jalapenos for some extra heat.
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I generally make either chicken tenders or chicken strips throughout a busy week. I like to change them up because they can get boring and tend to be unhealthy. When I make my own nuggets I like to use ground chicken, so that I can toss in veggies and a healthier breading so you can get some nutritional value out of them. When I make chicken strips I like to bread them like classic fried chicken but that tend to have a lot of ingredients and shaking a bag of flour can kind of get away from you. So for the tempura chicken I love it because it shorter prep with an already short cooking time. You marinade, dunk and drop and its a simple as that. These chicken tenders fly off of the table. So if you want leftovers make a double batch. Check out my tips and tricks below for the best spicy tempura chicken. Try this recipe out and let me know what you think.
TIPS & TRICKS FOR THE BEST SPICY TEMPURA CHICKEN:
the smaller the chicken the better: when you slice your chicken up before you batter it if you think a piece is too big it probably is. this batter for this recipe is going to give you really a really puffy batter so keep the chicken small to make eating it more enjoyable.
rest your tempura batter: one you finish your tempura batter make sure it has time to sit out like 15 minutes so that the batter has time to rest and settle so that your batter doesn’t get tough.
regular ginger is fine: this sauce was inspired by all the great things you have with sushi so i used pickled ginger for a little more tameness and some acid in the pickling brine its in. but if you don’t have pickled ginger or sushi ginger then minced ginger is perfectly fine but start with a teaspoon of fresh and work your way up.
keep your tempura warm in a preheated oven: you know your tempura is cooked correctly by two things if its golden brown and floating and it hold its crunch after 10 minutes. tempura isn’t the type of batter to go soft on you quickly so if it immediately goes soft once pulled from the oil cook the next batch just a touch longer and put it in a warm oven to keep it crisp.
don’t sauce what you wont eat: tempura chicken actually reheats really well especially in an air fryer at 350 for 6 minute. if you sauce the leftovers you lose all opportunities to reheat.
use a chopstick for you batter: when i’m making a tempura batter or even fluffing rice i always opt for a chopstick. a spoon or fork tend to slosh around and you kind of have to work the batter. the chopstick just glides right through.
MAKE TEMPURA BATTER: To make tempura batter add cornstarch, seltzer, teaspoon of salt and flour. Mix together with a chopstick and let it rest for 15 minutes. If your tempura batter is too thick add more seltzer too thin add more flour.
MAKE SAUCE AHEAD OF TIME: To make you sauce combine all ingredients. Try it ahead of time to adjust or add more seasoning and spice.
PREHEAT CANOLA OIL: Heat canola oil to 375F.
MARINADE CHICKEN: Marinade chicken in soy sauce, sriracha, salt, black pepper and garlic powder let sit for 30 minutes.
TOSS CHICKEN AND DUNK: Toss chicken in half a cup corn starch and then dunk one by one in the tempura batter. To make sure you batter doesn’t stick hold and drag the chicken through the grease before you completely drop it in to add a “protective” coat to the batter.
DRESS IT UP: Once you chicken is out of the tempura feel free to dunk the chicken in the sauce but to get the jalapenos, green onions and cilantro to stick you’ll have to drizzle on some sauce. So do that once all your chicken is done and ready to eat then enjoy!
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