** A very big thank you for sharing the happiness and relief of Dozer’s ongoing recovery post surgery. I’m so touched by all the support. ❤️ Now I can get back to my day job – GREAT FOOD!**

Here’s my recipe for Crispy Pork Belly Banh Mi, possibly the best sandwich I’ve ever had in my life! Stuffed with juicy pork belly meat with ultra crispy crackling, this Vietnamese sandwich has all the essential banh mi fixings plus a special secret banh mi sauce. Out of all the types of banh mi I make, this is my favourite!

Crispy Pork Belly Banh Mi

I recently had the best banh mi of my life at a place called Ca Com in Melbourne. It was a banh mi stuffed with crispy pork belly with a special sauce and plenty of banh mi fixings, and it was absolutely incredible. The standout was the pork itself which was ridiculously juicy with superior crispy crackling!

In fact, in recent years I’ve noticed more people ordering pork belly banh mi over the classic “mystery pork slices” version, an observation consistent with an Instagram poll I ran where 57% of respondents voted for crispy pork over the classic mystery pork slices (16%). Does that surprise you? It did me!

As wildly popular as the pork belly Banh mi is, it is actually quite hard to find really good ones, with dry meat and not-so-crispy-crackling the most common shortfall. So in case you don’t live around the corner from Ca Com (like me, all the way up in Sydney!), here’s my copycat recipe.

It’s not exactly the same (for example, they don’t use pâté, I insist of sticking with this tradition), but I’ve taken inspiration from theirs, including a copycat of their special banh mi sauce. I hope you become as obsessed with this as I have!

Authenticity background – it is!

In case you are curious, crispy pork belly banh mi does exist in Vietnam. The “mystery pork slices” version is still considered the classic, but banh mi shops and street vendors offer all sorts of filling options, from grilled meats to meatballs, chicken to egg. Crispy pork is not as common with street vendors (I think practicality might be a factor, because of the cooking logistics and cost) but it does exist.

Anatomy of a Crispy Pork Belly Banh Mi

Here’s what makes up a pork belly banh mi. There’s some gathering involved (oh yes, and a simple crispy crackling pork belly to make 😂). But once gathered (and crackled), assembly is a breeze! Excellent food for gatherings, particularly in summer.

1. Crispy pork belly (don’t worry, I have a tried-and-proven easy crispy crackling trick!)

2. Spreads – mayonnaise and pate

3. Pickled vegetables – carrot and daikon (white radish)

4. Fresh veg – coriander/cilantro, cucumber slices

5. Garnishes – fresh chilli, coriander/cilantro, crispy Asian shallots (optional, store bought)

6. Special banh mi sauce – A hoisin coconut milk mixture, copycat of the sauce used by Ca Com!

7. Crusty bread roll

Slow roasted Crispy Pork Belly for banh mi

Using the tried and true (easy!) tips in my Crispy Pork Belly recipe, this pork belly has terrifically crispy crackling that is crispy from edge to edge – no rubbery spots – with a tender fall-apart-flesh. It’s initially slow roasted to make the meat tender and dry out the skin, then blasted at a high heat to make the skin crispy.

Guaranteed crispy skin tips

Here are my little tricks that make all the difference to ensure we get crispy skin!

• DO NOT SCORE THE SKIN. A) you don’t need to score for crispy crackling. B) It’s risky. All it takes is an accidental pinprick piercing of the flesh and the juices that bubble up through that tiny hole will spread and result in a 10 cm/4″ patch of rubbery skin. While skilled butchers would never make this mistake, do you know who scored the pork belly you bought – an apprentice or a high school kid working in the grocery store meat department? No we do not! Don’t risk it.

• Fridge dry – Dry the skin overnight in the fridge, uncovered. Even a few hours in the fridge is effective. This is an insurance policy step that is recommended. If you skip it (especially if your pork belly was vac packed) you are not allowed to complain if your pork belly is not as crazy crispy as mine! 😂

• Level your pork – Use foil balls to level your pork belly so the skin is sitting as flat as possible. This will ensure even distribution of heat across your pork belly skin for superior crackling. If you don’t do this step, you’ll find that the lower points don’t crackle well – if at all.

And that, my friends, is all the pertinent information I need to impart for crispy crackling pork belly. Then just follow the simple recipe steps! Here’s a visual summary:

INGREDIENTS FOR PORK BELLY

Here’s what you need to make the crispy pork belly. Chinese five spice powder isn’t traditional but I like to add it for a touch of extra flavour. So consider it optional – there’s so many other things going on in banh mi, you won’t miss it.

• Pork belly NOT SCORED – Look for a piece that is even thickness (rather than thin at one end and thicker at the other) with flat, smooth skin. This shape will crackle better and the flesh will cook through more evenly.

  Not scored – As noted in the above section, make sure the skin is not scored. Check carefully if you buy a vac packed one because sometimes it’s hard to tell.

• Oil – Just any neutral flavoured oil: canola, vegetable or peanut oil.

• Salt – Essential for crackling. In fact, if you don’t put salt the skin, it won’t get that nice bubbly crispiness, it just becomes a flat sheet of hard skin.

• Pepper – I actually like to use black pepper for pork belly, but white pepper is fine too.

• Chinese five spice – As noted above, optional extra flavour!

How to make crispy pork belly for Banh Mi

The steps below are a slightly abbreviated version – because there is a LOT to say about crispy pork belly! For a full explanation of the why for particular steps and processes, please visit my Crispy Pork Belly recipe which has much more extensive information.

1. Fridge dry overnight or for a few hours, to really dry out the skin. This is a crispy crackling insurance policy that is especially recommended if you purchased your pork belly vac packed where the skin is fully soaked in juices for days/weeks! If you don’t have time, just pat the skin dry really well with paper towels.

2. Rub the flesh side with the oil, some of the salt, and all the pepper and Chinese Five spice.

3. Foil boat – Place the pork on a large sheet of foil and fold up the sides to create a “boat”. This holds all the pork fat in as it melts which keeps the flesh super juicy and moist. It’s essentially almost confit-ing in its own fat!

4. Salt the skin – Rub a bit of oil on the skin then sprinkle the salt evenly across the surface. Take your time with this step because as noted above in the ingredients section, salt = lovely bubbly crackling!

5. Slow roast for 2 hours at a low 140°C/275°F (all oven types). During this stage, the flesh will become beautifully tender and the skin will dry out but it will still be rubbery at this stage.

   Oven temperature & time – For this recipe, I use the same oven temperature for both fan and standard ovens because at lower temperatures, there is less difference between the two. Astute cooks may also note the time is slightly shorter than the Crispy Pork Belly recipe. This is because we don’t need the pork quite so “fall apart” for use in banh mi as it is chopped up into pieces.

6. Level the skin – After the slow roasting time, the pork will be a bit wonky (meat fibres shrink as they cook) and the skin will still be rubbery. Use foil balls to prop up the lower parts of the belly so the skin is as level as possible so the heat distribution will be more even across the surface and thereby ensuring it crackles evenly!

   Here is what it looks like before and after levelling.

7. Crackle it! Then blast the pork belly in a hot 240°C/465°F (all oven types) for 30 minutes, rotating as needed (if your oven heat is patchy) and using scraps of foil if needed to protect parts that crackle faster.

8. Admire – Pull the pork out of the oven and admire the brilliant crackling you just made, and resist the urge to peel the whole sheet off and run away with it!

Once the pork belly is cooked, we cut it into thick slices then into chunks to stuff into the banh mi.

Other Crispy pork belly banh mi fixings

There’s no denying for this banh mi, the star player is the crispy pork. But the other elements are important too! Here’s what you need.

special banh mi sauce

The standard sauce for banh mi sandwiches is Maggi Seasoning (think of it as an MSG enhanced soy sauce) or a derivation thereof. And while it’s ideal for classic mystery pork slices banh mi, I personally never felt that it really worked with pork belly slices. For one, a watery sauce doesn’t cling to pork belly hunks. And for another, watery sauces softens crispy crackling faster. Criminal.

So when I saw the banh mi fairies at Ca Com drizzle a thick dark brown sauce on the pork belly, I broke out into applause. Genius! I declared. Followed by – what’s in it?

Here’s what’s in it!

pickled carrots and daikon

This is the most common type of pickles I’ve seen in banh mi. They are classic Asian pickles – the tang is not as sharp as Western ones (because rice vinegar is not as sharp as most western vinegars), and they are more sweet than salty (but not overly sweet like some western ones tend to be).

Using carrots and daikon is an easy way to ensure you get great crunch in the pickles! Find the recipe for these pickles here.

vegetables and herbs

Classic banh mi typical includes thin slices of cucumber and green onion, often cut to the length of the bread roll. It’s not much, but enough to add a hint of juicy crunch from the cucumber and freshness from green onion which jumbles together with everything else to create the greatness that is a banh mi eating experience.

SPREADS

As for the spreads, I’m sticking with tradition here: pâté and mayonnaise. If you skip the pâté, it ain’t a banh mi!😊

Making the banh mi

Putting the banh mi tougher is just about the order in which it is assembled. And stuffing generously. Nobody wants a stingy banh mi!!

1. Pate first – spread on the base of the roll.

2. Mayo next – then spread the mayonnaise on top of the pate.

3. Vegetables – Pile the pickled vegetables non the pate, then plate the cucumber slices and green onion against the lid of the roll.

4. Pork – Then pile the pork in!

5. Sauce & coriander – Next, shove plenty of coriander down the side of the pork and drizzle everything with the banh mi sauce. Be as generous as you want – I use about 1 tablespoon.

6. Garnish – And finally, garnish! As much fresh chilli as you dare and a shower of crispy shallots (if using).

And with that, you are done and about to experience one of the greatest sandwiches of your life!!

Why we make crispy pork belly banh mi

We here in Sydney are blessed with an increasing number of banh mi shops, ranging from modern funky ones to traditional banh mi stands in Vietnamese neighbourhoods. However, as noted earlier, it is actually quite hard to find really good pork belly banh mi, with the pork itself being the letdown. The meat is not that juicy, the crackling not always crispy.

Having said that, even if the meat is not perfect, it is still a very enjoyable sandwich, thanks to all the other banh mi fixings. They are also typically extremely good value, with an enormous amount of pork for the price you pay. I understand why they are popular!

But, this homemade version? It is better than any I’ve had in Sydney. You just can’t beat the experience of fresh homemade pork belly.

The other cause to make this of course, is if you do not happen to live in an area with (good) banh mi shops, and for cost reasons too because this recipe will make 5 generously stuffed banh mi for around $30 – $35, depending on the price you pay for pork belly.

I really hope you try this one day. It is truly an exceptional eating experience! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Crispy Pork Belly Banh Mi

Recipe video above. The crispy pork belly version of the famous Vietnamese sandwich, inspired by Ca Com in Melbourne, a famous banh mi shop. Hands down one of the best sandwiches I have ever made in my life, and my favourite type of banh mi (all my recipes here). Excellent food for sharing with friends and Sunday lunches.

The Special Sauce is a copycat of the Ca Com sauce and it's an excellent match for crispy pork – thicker so it clings and doesn't soak and soften the skin or bread.

PS The recipe for the crispy skin pork belly is based on the much-loved Crispy Pork Belly recipe. So you can have confidence that your pork WILL have perfect crispy crackling!

Course Main, Sandwich

Cuisine Vietnamese

Keyword crispy pork banh mi, Crispy pork belly, pork belly banh mi, pork belly crackling

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 3 hours hours

Drying skin in fridge 1 day day

Servings 5 rolls

Calories 1313cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Crispy pork belly for banh mi

• 1kg / 2 lb pork belly with skin on , NOT SCORED. Look for 3 – 3.5cm / 1.2 – 1.6" thick, even thickness with flat, unwrinkled skin, preferably not vac-packed (Note 1)
• 1 1/2 tsp canola or vegetable oil , divided
• 1/2 tsp Chinese Five Spice , optional (you won't miss it)
• 1 tsp cooking/kosher salt , divided
• 1/4 tsp black pepper (or white pepper)

Special banh mi sauce (Ca Com copy!)

• 4 tbsp Hoisin sauce
• 3 tbsp coconut milk , full fat
• 1/2 tsp dark soy sauce (mainly for colour, sub light or regular soy)

To make the banh mi (5 rolls)

• 5 crusty white rolls (lightly oven toast to crisp if crust is softened)
• 120g/ 4 oz chicken pate (Note 2)
• 6 tbsp whole-egg mayonnaise or Kewpie
• 1 batch Vietnamese pickled carrots and daikon
• 3 green onion stems , cut to length of rolls (2 to 3 pieces per roll)
• 2 cucumbers , finely sliced using vegetable peeled or knife
• 2 cups coriander/cilantro leaves and small sprigs
• 3 Birds Eye or Thai chillis , finely sliced
• 8 tbsp crispy fried shallots , store bought (Note 3)

Instructions

Crispy pork belly for banh mi

• Dry skin overnight: Place pork belly on a plate. Pat skin dry with paper towels. Leave uncovered in fridge overnight to dry out the skin. (If you don't have time, pat the skin dry as best you can).
• Preheat oven to 140°C/285°F (both fan and standard ovens).
• Season flesh: Drizzle flesh side with 1 tsp oil. Sprinkle over 1/2 tsp salt, and all the pepper and Chinese five spice. Rub all over the flesh, including on the sides.
• Foil boat: Place 2 pieces of foil on a work surface. Put the belly in middle of foil, skin side up. Fold the sides in to enclose the belly, forming an open box, pinching corners to seal tightly and make it as snug as possible. Place meat on a tray.
• Season skin: Pat skin dry with paper towels. Rub with 1/2 tsp oil then sprinkle remaining 1/2 tsp salt evenly all over the skin surface, from edge to edge.
• Slow roast 2 hours: Place in the oven and roast for 2 hours, tightening the foil around the pork after 1 hour (the pork will shrink). This protects the flesh from drying out.
• Increase heat: Remove pork from oven, then increase heat to 240°C/465°F (all oven types).
• Level pork: Remove pork from foil, discard fat and foil. Place pork on a rack set over a tray. Use scrunched up balls of foil stuffed under pork to prop it up so the skin surface is as level and horizontal as possible (see photos in post).
• 30 minutes blast! Place the pork back in the oven for 30 minutes, rotating after 15 minutes as needed, until the crackling is deep golden, puffy and crispy all over. If some patches are browning faster, protect with foil patches.
• Rest 10 minutes: Remove pork from oven. Rest for 10 minutes before slicing.

Making the banh mi

• Sauce – Mix the ingredients in a bowl then set aside. This will keep for 5 days in the fridge .
• Chop pork – Cut the pork into 1 1/2 cm / 0.6" thick slices, then each slide into 1 1/2 cm / 0.6" chunks.
• Split & spread – Split the roll in half down the side, keeping the lid attached. Smear the base with 1 1/2 tbsp of pate, then 1 1/2 tbsp of mayonnaise (on top of the pate)
• Stuff – Pile about 1/3 cup pickled vegetables on the mayonnaise. Lay 2 slices of cucumber and 2 green onions against the lid. Pile pork on top. Drizzle pork with 1 tbsp of sauce. Stuff coriander/cilantro down the side, sprinkle with chilli then2 tablespoons of crispy shallots as you want (if using).
• Serving – Eat immediately! Banh mi is definitely one of those foods best eaten freshly made!

Notes

1. Pork Belly – Best to get one that has not been vacuum-packed (juices soak skin). If your belly is vac-packed, I really recommend doing the overnight drying uncovered in the fridge.

Look for a piece with flat, even skin as wrinkly skin doesn’t crackle as well (in the ridges, because heat can’t get to it as well).

Do NOT get one that is scored. It is a plain fact that you do NOT need to score for perfect crackling (read proof here!) All too often, butchers do poor scoring jobs and pierce through the fat into the flesh. Even the tiniest prick will cause meat juices to bubble up onto the skin and you’ll end up with rubbery patches.

2. Pate – or other pate of choice, but not orange or other flavoured

3. Crispy fried shallots – Sold in packs and tubs at regular grocery stores in the Asian aisle. Ca Com finishes their pork belly banh mi with a shower of crispy fried shallots! It definitely adds an extra touch, with crunchy salty goodness. But it’s optional because it is still excellent without.

4. Pork belly storage and reheating – Pork belly keeps and reheats well, and the crackling stays crispy. If not using cooked pork immediately, loosely cover with foil (it’s ok, the skin will stay crispy!) and it will be good for an hour to use for the banh mi. If intentionally making ahead, separate the crackling from the meat and reheat the cracking in the oven (crispy!) and meat in the microwave (retains moisture).

Nutrition

Calories: 1313cal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 135g | Saturated Fat: 49g | Cholesterol: 180mg | Sodium: 661mg | Potassium: 464mg | Fiber: 1g | Vitamin A: 26IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 1mg

Life of Dozer

So great to continue to see progress with Dozer’s recovery post op! Here he is at his first outing to the park since his surgery.

This surgery really took it out of him. Combined with his lack of exercise for the better part of the last 7 weeks, I’m taking his rehab slowly. His breathing is still a bit hoarse when he pants, but the most relieving thing for me is that he doesn’t have his panicked breathing episodes (think – asthma attack) multiple times a day. He sleeps through the night peacefully and quietly and is restful during the day.

And I’ve got my shoot-studio companion back. 🥰 He hasn’t figured out yet that he can no longer taste test (see this post for why). He also doesn’t realise I’m shooting pickled vegetables here.😂

The post Crispy pork belly banh mi appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Finally cracked the code to Truly Crispy Salt and Pepper Squid!! The fry batter is so crunchy it stays crispy even when it’s gone cold, and it’s not at all greasy. There’s no complicated steps or ingredients. Just a specific ratio of flour to cornflour plus an all-important 30 minute refrigeration for the batter!

Ultra Crispy Salt and Pepper Squid

It only took us 3 years to crack the ultimate, truly crispy Salt and Pepper Squid! Hand on heart, this is crispier than any fried squid I’ve had in a restaurant, ever. And I have tried a lot. Once I had my sights set of creating a great Salt and Pepper Squid recipe, I would never pass up an opportunity if I saw it on a menu.

95% of the time, they just weren’t crispy at all which is so disappointing, and all too often they were really greasy. The 5% of the time that they were crispy, the crispness really only lingered for just enough time to eat the bowl of squid – provided you ate very quickly!

Well, our hunt for crispy squid is finally over. It is here today, and it’s incredible! The fry batter is light, super crunchy and not greasy at all. In fact, it’s so crispy it stays crispy even when it’s stone cold!

** If you’re interested in the recipe development process, see the blue box below the ingredients section for more information where I’ve indulged in some background information!**

Ingredients

Here’s what you need to make Crispy Salt and Pepper Squid.

The squid

You can use either squid tubes that are sold already cleaned (right, below) or whole baby squid (left) which needs to be cleaned before use (ask your fish monger or do it yourself). Baby squid is nicer because the squid flesh is thinner and more delicate so it’s softer. Plus, the tentacles are the crunchiest! But by no means are cleaned squid tubes a poor cousin.

• Baby squid is sold whole with the head and tentacles attached, and the skin on, as pictured. They range in size but the ones pictured have a body and head about 20 cm / 8” long and tentacles roughly the same length. 

  The body (the tube part) and the tentacles are the edible parts. You can either ask your fish monger to clean the squid for you or do it yourself, see my separate tutorial here. It involves: removing the skin, cleaning out the guts, removing the cartilage and beak, and removing the head. 

• Squid tubes – Sold pre cleaned, sparkling white tubes ready for use! Handier, but it is less tender than baby squid simply because the meat comes from a larger, older squid so it’s thicker. It’s just like animal meat – younger, smaller animal = softer meat, but meat from older animals is by no means tough and chewy if cooked correctly. (And yes, we cook the squid correctly!!)

The crispy batter for squid

We found that the key to the ultra crispy batter for squid came down to using the right flours (cornflour + regular flour), the perfect ratio and the clincher: refrigerating the batter for 30 minutes. If you’re a food nerd like me who is interested in the logic of the why this batter works, read below for more information!

• Flour and cornflour/cornstarch – Just regular plain flour (all-purpose flour). We use a very specific ratio of each to achieve the right level of crispiness and golden colour. This is because cornflour makes things crispy but won’t fry up golden, and if you use too much, the batter is chewy and gets stuck in your teeth. On the other hand, flour batters fry up beautifully golden but are not as crispy, and they soften so quickly. So I use both!

• Baking powder – This makes the batter puff up a bit to make it lighter rather than dense.

• Regular tap water – I use ice cold soda water in other fry batters as a secret trick for crunch. But for this recipe because we need to refrigerate anyway, there’s no need to use cold water. And there’s no point using fizzy water because the fizziness would not last for the refrigeration time.

• Salt and pepper – for seasoning.

How to make salt and pepper squid

Cutting the squid

If using cleaned squid tubes (pictured above), you can start with these steps immediately. If you have whole baby squid (with the skin, head and tentacles, you will need to clean it first. See the separate post on how to clean and prepare baby squid here.

1. Cut down one side of the tube so you can lay it out flat. Pat both sides dry with paper towels.

2. Score – Lightly score the flesh using a small sharp knife into 1.5cm / 0.6” diamonds. Take care not to cut all the way through. Scoring the flesh creates more ridges so the squid fries up crunchier and allows it to cook faster and more evenly which means more tender squid.

3. Rectangles – Then cut the squid into rectangles about 5 x 2 cm / 2 x 1” in size. Exactness isn’t important here.

4. Wings – If you used baby squid, score the wings too (the flappy bits pulled off the tube) then just use them whole. You don’t need to do anything to prepare the tentacles though you could separate them if you want so you get more tentacle pieces. They are the crunchiest bits after all, everybody wants them!

BATTERING & FRYING

This is actually a good recipe to start with if you are new to oil frying because small pieces of squid are easy to handle and it cooks in just a couple of minutes. Much easier than, say, Southern Fried Chicken!

1. Batter – Whisk the flour, cornflour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Then whisk in the water until lump free.

2. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Do not skip or shortcut this step! It’s important to give the batter time for the gluten to develop which will make the batter cling to the slippery squid better as well as frying up nice and crisp, rather than chewy and greasy.

3. Batter up – Put all the squid into the batter. We will fry them in 3 batches and the remaining squid can stay in the batter while you fry.

   Pick up a piece of squid and let the excess batter drip off for a second.

4. Fry – Carefully put the squid into oil preheated to 160°C/320°F (I use my Thermapen to check the temperature). Fry for 2 minutes (baby squid) or 3 minutes (the squid tubes which are thicker). They should be light golden and a bit crispy, but not super crispy – that comes with the second fry!

   The fry time is short because squid cooks really quickly, and nobody wants chewy squid.

5. Drain – Scoop the squid out with a spider or slotted spoon onto a paper towel lined tray to absorb excess oil. Then continue to cook batches 2 and 3.

6. Fry 2 for crispiness – Now, crank up the oil to 200°C/390°F. Then fry the squid in 2 batches for just 90 seconds until it’s very golden and very crispy. This is the step that locks in the crispiness!

   You can do this step in 2 batches, it’s ok to crowd the pot.

7. Bowl – Scoop out the squid into a paper towel lined bowl. Taste first before sprinkling with salt and pepper (the batter has decent seasoning in it so you do not want to over salt!) and giving it a good toss.

8. Serve – Pour into a bowl (wait until you hear the clatter in the recipe video!) and serve with Garlic Mayonnaise (Aioli) if desired (literally just mayo + grated garlic). Or just some fresh lemon wedges.

   Look how happy I am! It is, of course, because the batter is so incredibly crispy and the squid is so tender!!!

This recipe makes a fairly large batch using 500g/1 lb of squid which, once fried up, will fill a tray. As with most fried foods, I figure if we’re going to make it, let’s make plenty!

It’s a meal for 4 to 5 people or a great appetiser for sharing for 6 to 8 people. And though at its prime freshly cooked, this remarkable fry batter crust will stay crunchy even when the squid is cold and it reheats incredibly well. Just pop the squid in a hot oven for 6 minutes just to reheat the crust and warm the squid inside. Take a bite and marvel at the re-incarnation of the crunch!! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

See separate tutorial for how to clean baby squid referenced in the video here.

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Crispy Salt & Pepper Squid

Recipe video above. It only took us 3 years to crack the ultimate, truly crispy Salt and Pepper Squid! Hand on heart, this is crispier than any squid I've had in a restaurant, ever. The fry batter is light, super crunchy and not greasy at all. In fact, it's so crispy it stays crispy even when it's stone cold!

After eliminating rice flour, potato flour and tapioca, we found the perfect ratio of flour to cornflour (cornstarch) that fries up crunchy in mere minutes, before the squid can overcook. But the final key was refrigerating the batter for 30 minutes. This allowed the gluten to develop so the batter clings to the slippery squid better and doesn't fry up chewy or greasy.

Course Appetiser, Finger Food, Mains

Cuisine Western

Keyword crispy salt and pepper squid, crispy squid, fried squid

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 3 – 8 people

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Squid – choose (Note 1):

• 700 g / 1.4 lb medium whole baby squid , cleaned (better, more tender)
• 500 g / 1 lb squid tubes , already cleaned

Batter (Note 2):

• 2/3 cup cornflour / cornstarch
• 1/3 cup plain / all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp cooking / kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp white pepper powder
• 2/3 cup cold tap water

Cooking / seasoning:

• 3 – 4 cups vegetable or canola oil (~4cm / 1.5″ depth in a pot)
• Cooking / kosher salt – just a pinch!
• White pepper powder

Easy aioli (garlic mayonnaise):

• 1/2 cup whole egg mayonnaise or kewpie
• 1/2 tsp finely grated garlic

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Preparing squid:

• Cut one side of the squid tube to lay it out in one flat piece. Pat both sides dry with a paper towel.
• Lightly score the inside with a small sharp knife in 1.5 cm / 0.6" diamonds (don't cut all the way through). (Note 3)
• Cut the squid into pieces 5 x 2cm (2 x 1") rectangles (approximately).

Aioli:

• Mix the ingredients together in a bowl and set aside for at least 20 minutes (up to 24 hours).

Batter:

• Batter – Whisk the flour, cornflour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Then whisk in water until smooth. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. (Note 4)
• Heat oil – Fill small heavy based pot or large saucepan with 4cm / 1.5" of oil. Heat to 160°C/320°F on medium high heat. (I use a Thermapen to check the temp)
• Give the batter a quick whisk then add all the squid in a toss to coat. (Including tentacles if using baby squid – it's the crunchiest!)

Fry 1:

• Batter – Cook the squid in 3 batches. Pick up some squid and let the excess batter to drip off. Careful place in the oil. Use chopsticks to seperate the pieces that stick together.
• Fry baby squid for 2 minutes or the regular squid tubes for 3 minutes until light golden. Use a spider or slotted spoon to remove the squid on a paper towel lined tray.
• Repeat – Fry remaining squid, making sure the oil comes back to temperature before cooking batches 2 and 3.

Fry 2 – crisp it!

• Increase oil temp – Increase the stove to high and bring the the oil up to 200°C/390°F.
• Bowl – Line a large mixing bowl with double layer of paper towels.
• Fry – Place half of the squid in the oil (it's ok to crowd the pot). Cook for 1 1/2 minutes, until it becomes deep golden and crispy. Remove into the bowl. Bring the oil back up to 200°C/390°F then fry the remaining squid.
• Season – Remove paper towel. Taste first then sprinkle lightly with as much salt and pepper as you want (the batter has salt in it already). Toss well.

Serve:

• Pour into a serving bowl and serve with aioli! This batter is so good, it will stay crispy even once the squid has gone cold.

Notes

Servings – This will serve 3 to 4 as a main, or 5 to 8 as an appetiser/finger food. See below for reheating.

1. Squid – Whole baby/medium squid (sold with skin, head etc on) is smaller and more tender when cooked than the larger thicker squid tubes sold already cleaned (but is still very good in this recipe and I will happily use!). Plus, you get tentacles which are the crunchiest and best part! See photos in post for comparison. Get whole squid cleaned by your fisher monger or see my separate tutorial here for how to clean it yourself (it’s not hard). 700g (1.4 lb) whole baby squid = 500g (1 lb) once cleaned.

2. Cornflour = crunch but doesn’t fry golden, and too much makes a batter that gets stuck in your teeth. Flour = not as crunchy but stays golden. Using a combination works best!

3. Scoring – Helps with extra crispy edges and even, fast cooking = more tender squid.

4. Refrigeration – Lets gluten develop so batter sticks better to slippery squid and won’t be chewy or greasy when fried.

Leftovers will keep for 3 days. It will still be crispy when it cools. Refrigerate then reheat in a 220°C/425°F oven for 6 to 8 minutes.

Nutrition – I can’t calculate, sorry! I can’t guess the amount of oil in each piece. Let’s just say it has more calories than a lettuce leaf but with one bite you won’t care.

More crunchy fried goodness

Honey Prawns – stays crispy!

Crispy Beer Battered Fish

Perfect Crispy French fries

Honey Chicken – STAYS CRISPY for hours!

Fried Chicken

Pakora (Indian Vegetable Fritters)

Fried recipes

Life of Dozer

There is no limit to how low I will stoop for him. 😂

The post Truly Crispy Salt & Pepper Squid appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Pierogi Ruskies: Potatoes. Cheese. Butter. The Polish are genius – this is dumpling heaven! A great weekend project – cook some now, freeze some for later. They cook from frozen!!

A Pierogi Ruskie recipe

I’m so excited to be bringing you this Pierogi recipe! I’d eat them every day if they didn’t tip the scales in the wrong direction. 😭

Even if you haven’t tried a Pierogi before, all you need to know is that these ones are cheesy, creamy mashed potato filled dumplings served with an intensely butter onion sauce.

In other words, it is every Cheese-Lovin’ Carb Monster’s Dream come true, and she who is the self appointed Head Priestess of this Club was literally in mind-boggling ecstasy when faced with a plate of these.

They are, to say the least, one of the most delicious things I’ve eaten this year!

Ingredients in Pierogi

Very, very few!

THE Pierogi filling

It’s essentially cheesy, buttery, creamy mashed potato. See authenticity note below the photo on the cheese, and why it was important for me to make this recipe accessible to “everyone”!

• Potatoes – Use all-rounder potatoes so they mash up fluffy and creamy. The most common potatoes at regular stores will be fine – they’re stocked because they’re great all-rounders.

  Australia – Sebago (the dirt brushed potatoes sold everywhere) are perfect, Desiree are great too. US: Yukon Gold, russet, UK: Maris piper, King Edward.

• Cheese – I use cheddar but any good melting cheese you’d happily put in your grilled cheese is fine. Give mozzarella a miss. While it melts great, it doesn’t have enough flavour.

  Authenticity note – Pierogi is traditionally made with quark, a mildly tangy European cottage cheese. Quark is not something I’ve seen frequently in Australia. Cottage cheese is probably the best substitute. But shredded cheese, as you can imagine, makes a delicious alternative – imagine it melted throughout creamy mashed potato!

  I opted to use regular cheese because I want this recipe to be as accessible as possible so many people can experience the greatness that is Pieorgis.

• Butter – Use unsalted so we can add the right amount of salt.

Pierogi DUMPLING DOUGH

• Flour – Just plain / all-purpose flour.

• Large egg – From a carton labelled “large eggs” (they should weight around 55-60g/2 oz).

• Butter – Melted into the water that I accidentally left out of the phot.

ONION BUTTER SAUCE

You could serve the Pierogis will just melted butter and you’d swoon. But it’s even better with a sautéed onion sauce which is common with traditional Polish Pierogis.

How to make Pierogi

Pierogis are easier to wrap than gyoza and potstickers. Because Asians like pleating – which can take practice to master. The Polish just press to seal. Much simpler! – I’m a big fan

HOT TIP: Got a Pierogi itch that needs scratching but homemade wrappers are out of reach? Use store-bought round Asian dumpling wrappers instead. The wrappers are thinner but it works a treat!

1. CHEESY POTATO FILLING FIRST

Make the filling first because it needs 1 1/2 hours to fully cool, during which time you’ll have the dough rolled out and cut, ready to fill!

1. Boil potatoes in salted water, starting with the potatoes in cold water. Why? Because otherwise the outside of the potatoes cook too much and start to crumble before the inside is cooked.

2. Drain potatoes.

3. Mash & mix – Pass the potatoes through a potato ricer or mash using a regular potato masher. Then mix in the butter, cheese, salt and pepper. The cheese won’t melt – it melts when the pierogis is boiled!

4. Cool – Spread out on to a tray. Cover with cling wrap, pressing so it is fully in contact, so the filling doesn’t sweat. Cool on the counter (about 30 minutes) then refrigerate until cold (1 hour+). You can do this the day before.

   The filling needs to be cold so it doesn’t sweat inside the dough (which would make the dough soggy). It’s also easier to wrap the dumplings because the potato is firm.

2. how to make pierogi dumpling DOUGH

You could use your stand-mixer but I enjoy the leisurely process of hand-kneading this dough. It’s easy to manage because it’s a small amount and the dough is soft. Plus, hand-kneading is somewhat satisfying, and you can (smugly) tell everybody fortunate enough to eat one of these – I made these myself with my own hands. (You know I do!)

1. Dry – Whisk the flour and salt in a mixing bowl.

2. Add wet – Make a well in the centre. Then add melted butter with warm water plus the egg. Mix to combine using a spatula – it will be a rough, shaggy dough.

3. Knead – Scrape out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead for 5 minutes until the dough becomes smooth. Use the bare minimum flour as needed to prevent it from sticking to your hands and the work surface. (Too much flour = drier stiffer dough = more difficult to roll out thinly).

4. Rest – Wrap with cling wrap and leave on the counter for 30 minutes.

3. MAKING THE PIEROGIS

1. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to 3mm / 1/8″ thickness.

2. Cut out rounds using a 7.5 cm / 3″ cutter. Do as many as you can, then gather surplus dough into a ball, wrap with cling wrap and set aside to roll out and cut more later.

3. Filling – Place 1 tablespoon of cheesy potato filling in the middle of a round (20g, if you want to be exact!).

4. Dip finger with water and run along edge of half the circle. This will help seal securely.

5. Fold dough over to enclose the filling then press the edges together.

6. Seal firmly by pinching to make slight dents, the traditional look of pierogis.

   Place them on a lightly floured tray and continue to wrap remaining Pierogi (including rolling out the remaining dough). You should get ~30 pierogis. A nice big batch – cook some now, freeze some for later!

4. HOW TO COOK PIEROGIS

Boil like pasta! Just make sure you don’t crowd the pot. Pierogis needs space to bounce around! I cook 8 in a medium pot, and up to 12 in a wider pot. Tips below for batching cooking larger quantities.

1. Sauté onion first – Sauté chopped onion in butter until golden on the edges. Then transfer into a bowl or container and use as much or as little as you want for whatever size serving of pierogis you are making. 1 large onion is enough for 30 pierogis because they are only sparingly scattered with onion, like pictured. Cook onion will keep for 5 days in the fridge, or freezer for 3 months.

2. Boil 5 minutes – Bring ~3 litres/quarts of water to the boil with 1 tablespoon of salt. Lower 10 pierogis into the water and cook for 5 minutes, or until they are floating on the surface (they sink at first).

   ⚠️ As noted above the step photos, don’t crowd the pot else the pierogis will stick together and cook unevenly.
   ⚡️ It’s important to use salted water so you get some seasoning into the pierogis wrapper as it cooks. Makes it tastier!

3. Reserve water – Dip a jug into the water and scoop out 1 cup water. We’re going to use a bit of this water to make the sauce. The cooking water is better than tap water because it’s got starch from the pierogi dough in it which makes the sauce thicken. If you just mixed water + butter together, it stays water.

4. Scoop out or drain –  Then use a slotted spoon to transfer pierogi into a bowl. Or, you can drain in a colander if you are not using the water to cook more.

5. Butter sauce – Using a largish pan, melt 25g butter (1 1/2 tablespoons) over medium heat. Add 1/3 of the onion butter (from step 1) plus the cooked pierogis with 2 tablespoons of the reserved cooking water.

6. Toss for 1 minute, still on the stove, until the pierogis are coated in the butter sauce. You’ll see it goes from watery (when you first add the water) to thickened so it sticks to the surface of the pierogi.

   Larger batch – Just scale up the butter, onion and water. At this stage, it’s easy to eye-ball it. And I wouldn’t discourage the use of even more butter!

7. Serve – Slide onto a serving plate, scraping out every drop of butter. Sprinkle with parsley, add a dollop of sour cream. Eat and be happy!

Big-batch cooking of Pierogi

As strange as it sounds to have a whole section on how to cook and serve larger batches of pierogi, there’s actually practical factors that come into play that need to be considered! The reason is because they are quite large – bigger than Gyoza and Chinese dumplings, you can’t boil more than 10 to 12 max per batch, and they need to be tossed in the sauce on the stove.

So the recipe I’m sharing today makes 30 pierogis but provides directions to cook one batch of 8 to 10 (which is a nice amount for 2 people). Leftovers are perfect for freezing – you can cook from frozen!

But if you would like to cook all 30 pierogis, here’s some practical tips for how to do it!

boiling large batches

Pierogis need to be boiled in a single layer else they can get stuck together and the wrapping won’t cook evenly. So you’ll max out at around 12 pierogis in a large home-pot.

If you want to make and serve more, then boil in batches of 12 and spread cooked pierogis on a tray. Once you’ve boiled as much as you want, then drop all of them back into the pot for 30 seconds to reheat before tossing with the butter. Reserve a mugful of the cooking water then drain in a colander.

Large batch butter sauce tossing

For the butter sauce tossing part, you can put in as many pierogis as you can comfortably fit into a large skillet. You could even use a large pot. Just make sure you can toss the pierogis, because that’s how you get a nice coating of butter on them.

Simple method for gigantic batches

If you want to serve all 30 pierogis at the same time, an easy way to sauce them up is to make the sauce separately then douse over the pierogis.

To do this, cook the pierogis per above (ie boil then reheat). Drain well in a colander and transfer into a serving bowl. Melt 70g / 4 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter with 1/3 cup of the cooking water in a small pan on medium heat. Simmer for a couple of minutes until the butter thickens (the starch in the pierogi cooking water makes this happen).

Serving pierogis

Cooking part done, it’s time to enjoy them! A dollop of sour cream adds a lovely cooling, tangy creamy touch that pairs so well with cheesy mashed potato (proof – reader favourite Stuffed Baked Potatoes!). And a little sprinkle of parsley or chives adds a nice touch of green to an otherwise very beige plate.

And as a plate of food that is an unapologetic celebration of three of my favourite food groups – butter, cheese and potato – a perky fresh side of greens would be a nice accompaniment. Even this self-confessed Cheese Lovin’ Carb Monster needs something fresh to cut through all that richness! Try a classic light vinaigrette with leafy greens or any steamed vegetables.

Hope you love this as much as we do! Big shout out to our Chef JB for doing much of the leg-work on the research, development and testing on this pierogi recipe, then teaching me and answering my many, many questions. It’s been raining pierogis in our kitchen!!! – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

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Pierogi Ruskies – Polish Dumplings

Recipe video above. Pierogi Ruskie's are Polish dumplings filled with cheesy, creamy mashed potatoes served with an onion butter sauce. They are even more delicious than they sound!

Traditionally made with quark which is an European fresh cheese which isn't easily found in Australia, so I've used cheddar because I want this recipe to be as accessible as possible to many people to experience the greatness that is Pieorgis!!! More in Note 2.

Excellent weekend project – eat some today and freeze some for later (they cook from frozen). Makes a nice big batch of 30 pierogis. For more dumplings of the world – head here!

Course Mains

Cuisine European, polish

Keyword pierogi, pierogi ruskies, polish dumplings

Prep Time 45 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Resting dough 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 55 minutes minutes

Servings 30 pierogis

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Pierogi dough:

• 2 cups flour , plain/all-purpose
• 1 tsp cooking/kosher salt
• 50g / 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 large egg , whisked (55-60g/2oz)

Pierogi filling:

• 500g / 1 lb potatoes , peeled and sliced 1cm / 1/2" thick (2 medium, Note 1)
• 1 tbsp cooking/kosher salt – for cooking potatoes
• 30g / 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese , tightly packed cup (Note 2)
• 1/4 tsp cooking/kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Onion Butter:

• 30g/ 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 onion , finely diced
• 1/2 tsp cooking/kosher salt

Cooking and serving:

• 1 tbsp cooking/kosher salt – for boiling water
• 25g/ 1 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter , per 8 – 10 pierogis (Note 3)
• Sour cream , for serving
• Parsley or chives , finely chopped – just a pinch

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Filling:

• Boil potatoes – Put potato and 1 tbsp salt in a large saucepan. Add cold tap water so it's 3cm/1 inch above potatoes. Bring to a boil on high heat then reduce heat to medium high and simmer for 15 minutes or until potatoes are soft.
• Mash – Drain, then pass the potatoes through a potato ricer into a bowl (or use potato masher)
• Cheese it – Immediately add butter, cheese, salt and pepper. Mix with a wooden spoon until fully combined.
• Cool – Spread out ~1cm / 1/2" thick on a tray. Cover with cling wrap, pressing so it is fully in contact. Cool on the counter (~30 min) then refrigerate until cold (1 hour+).

Pierogi Dough:

• Melt butter – Heat up the water and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat just until butter is melted, do not boil water. (Or do this in the microwave). Turn off heat.
• Mix dough – Whisk the flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the centre and then add the butter water plus egg. Mix to combine into a shaggy dough.
• Knead – Scrape out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead for 5 minutes until the dough becomes smooth (Note 3). You could also use your stand mixer.
• Rest – Wrap with cling wrap and leave on the counter for 30 minutes.

Wrapping pierogis:

• Roll & cut – On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to 3mm / 1/8" thickness. Cut out rounds using a 7.5 cm / 3" cutter. Do as many as you can, then gather surplus dough into a ball, wrap with cling wrap and set aside for later.
• Fill & wrap – Place 1 tablespoon of cheesy potato filling in the middle of a round. Dip finger with water and run along edge of half the circle. Fold dough over to enclose the filling and press to seal, making slight indents (no pleats).
• Wrap remaining – Place them on a lightly floured tray and continue to wrap remaining Pierogi (including rolling out the remaining dough). You should get ~30 pierogis.

Onion butter sauce:

• In a non stick skillet, melt the butter until foamy over medium heat. Add onion and salt, then cook, stirring regularly, for 10 to 15 minutes until golden on the edges. Scrape out into a bowl, then set aside (OK to cool).

Cooking & serving pierogis:

• Batch cooking – Directions below are for cooking and serving 10. Boil pierogis in batches of 10 to 12 max, they need space to bounce around in the water, and you need space to toss them in the butter. (Note 4 for big batch cooking)
• Boil 5 minutes – Bring ~3 litres/quarts of water to the boil with 1 tbsp salt. Lower 10 piergosi into the water. Cook for 5 minutes – they should be floating on the surface.
• Reserve water & drain – Dip a jug into the water and scoop out ~1 cup water. Then use a slotted spoon to transfer pierogi into a bowl (or drain, if not cooking more).
• Butter sauce – Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1/3 of the onion butter plus the cooked pierogis with 2 tablespoons of the reserved cooking water. Toss for 1 minute, still on the stove, until the pierogis are coated in the butter. (Note 4 on scaling up)
• Serve – Slide onto a serving plate, scraping out every drop of butter. Sprinkle with parsley, add a dollop of sour cream. Eat and be happy!

Notes

Recipe credits – Primarily adapted from this recipe from New York Times Cooking, with references to a whole bunch of other recipes. The main changes we made were process related.

Serving size – 4 to 5 pierogis with a side salad makes a nice meal. They are pretty rich, actually, being solely comprised of potato, cheese and butter!

1. Potatoes – Use your favourite mashing potatoes. All-rounder and floury / starchy potatoes are best. The most common potatoes stocked at regular stores should be good all-rounders.

Australia – Sebago (common dirt brushed potatoes), Desiree. US: Yukon Gold, russet, UK: Maris piper, King Edward.

2. Cheese – Traditionally made with quark which is an European fresh cheese which isn’t easily found in Australia. While cottage cheese is probably the closest substitute, I’ve used shredded cheese which, as you can imagine, is a delicious alternative when it’s melted throughout the potato. 

I use cheddar but any good melting cheese you’d happily put in your grilled cheese is fine (tasty, gruyere, Colby). Give mozzarella a miss – doesn’t have enough flavour for this recipe.

3. Kneading – When you first mix the dough in the bowl and form into a ball, the surface is rough and shaggy. It is kneaded enough when the surface of the dough ball is smooth. See video at 1.39.

4. Batch cooking – Don’t boil more than 10 – 12 pierogis max in a large pot because they need room to bounce around. To cook lots, boil 10 – 12 at a time, scoop out and spread on a tray. Boil the next batch. Then just before serving, put them all back into the boiling water for 30 seconds to warm them back up. Drain, then toss in the butter sauce with a splash of the reserved cooking water.

Butter amount – You’ll need around 1 1/2 tbsp / 25g plus 2 tablespoons of the cooking water for 8 to 10 pierogis. For all 30, you’ll need around 70g / 4 1/2 tbsp butter and 1/3 cup water. You can eyeball it. Butter is not an exact science here!

5. Make ahead – Pierogis freeze 100% perfectly and can be boiled from frozen! Just add an extra 1 – 2 minutes to the cook time. Freeze in single layers in an airtight container. To save space, you can freeze them on a tray then bundle them into an airtight container.

Life of Dozer

Coming to you in real time! This is Dozer today, at a photography studio for a Christmas special edition of Good Food Australia with the A-team: Rob Palmer (photographer), Emma Knowles (food stylist), Theresa Klein (photo chef). Who ever imaged a discount dog would experience such things!!

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KFC, eat your heart out! Our Fried Chicken Burger is way crispier than yours, the chicken is way juicier and it tastes way better. The trick is to mix a bit of marinade into the flour coating – this creates lumps that fries up into an awesome ultra crunchy crust. 

Henry’s Ultra Crispy Fried Chicken Burger

Today’s recipe is here courtesy of a young boy named Henry whom I met at a book signing in the NSW regional town of Mudgee. Huddled on the couch of a cosy local book store, he declared his signature dish to be the RecipeTin Fried Chicken. We enthused over how remarkably un-greasy it is and marvelled at how it’s crunchy all over, unlike KFC which we eeewed about how the skin has greasy soggy patches.

Conversation then moved into how we’d use the Fried Chicken to make the BEST fried chicken burger in the world. (Yes, we capitalise it!). We both agreed plain shredded lettuce was better than coleslaw (too rich!), melted cheese was unnecessary (too much!), tomato was optional. and the bun must be super soft.

So here it is. Dedicated to Henry and the town of Mudgee – I present to you, our very best Ultra Crispy Fried Chicken Burger!

Please observe the nubbly, crunchy, craggy surface on the fried chicken!! 🙌🏻

Ingredients

Here’s what you need for homemade Crispy Chicken Burgers.

Chicken brine keeps it juicy!

I use breast because it’s easier to get a nice uniform shape suitable for burgers. It’s marinated in a buttermilk and salt mixture which locks in juices. Essential because breast will cook beyond the ideal internal temperature in the cook time required to make the crust really crispy and golden.

Don’t worry if you don’t have buttermilk, substitute yogurt and milk instead. It works virtually the same!

• Chicken breast is my preference for a relatively uniform shape when trimmed to size. However, boneless chicken thighs work as well. Whichever you use, it’s best to pound to even thickness so it cooks through evenly and sits reasonably straight on the burger.

• Buttermilk – Known for its marinating qualities so the chicken is really juicy inside once cooked. It’s the traditional marinating ingredient used for Southern Fried Chicken which is the fried chicken recipe used for this burger.

  While it’s a common ingredient in the States, it’s more of a speciality baking item here in Australia. But there’s an easy substitute that works virtually the same – just plain yogurt and milk! The acidity and thickness of yogurt diluted with milk results in almost the same consistency as buttermilk, and yogurt is excellent for marinating (proof here!).

• Salt – For seasoning and increase the chicken’s juiciness.

• Egg – To make the flour crust stick to the chicken.

KFC 11 secret herbs and spices!

The flavour of the fried chicken is a copycat of KFC fried chicken. Flavour wise, it is very similar!

• Herbs and spices – No unusual players here, just all the usual suspects! Adjust the cayenne pepper for the amount of spiciness you want. Simply omit if you don’t want spicy at all!

• Cornflour/cornstarch and flour – For the coating of the chicken to make it fry up ultra crunchy! Cornflour makes it crunchier than just using flour. So why not just use all cornflour? Because it doesn’t go golden when fried, it stays white. On the other hand, flour coated things fry up into a beautiful golden colour! So by using a blend of the two, we get the best of both worlds – crunchy and golden colour.

Burger fixings

Don’t let anyone tell you what you should or should not have on your burger. Though, if you want a copycat better-than-KFC-Burger experience, here’s what you need!

• Soft buns – I use brioche buns because they’re so soft and pillowy, and a little bit sweet like KFC buns. However, you can use any buns you want. (I’d personally avoid ultra chewy / crispy ones though. A little too tough for use in burgers).

• Gherkins/pickles – Just your everyday dill pickles, or whatever takes your fancy. Just a little something to cut through the richness and saltiness of everything else going on inside the burger!

• Lettuce – Good ole’ iceberg lettuce! Nice and fresh, finely slicing it gives it some decent height and a lovely bed for the crunchy chicken to rest on.

• Garlic mayonnaise – KFC doesn’t use garlic mayo, but you and I know that a touch of garlic just makes mayo better. Turns it into aioli, actually!

How to make Crunchy Fried Chicken Burgers

It’s easier than traditional Fried Chicken which is made with bone-in chicken that take longer to fry (~6 to 8 minutes) so you need to be quite accurate with temperature control.

Chicken Burgers, on the other hand, are thinner, boneless pieces and take just 3 to 4 minutes to fry. And because of the shape, you don’t need nearly as much oil.

1. Pound the chicken to 1cm / 0.4″ even thickness. Use freezer bags, ziplock bags or similar (I use a purpose-made product called “Go-Between”) and a meat mallet, or rolling pin. Pounding is recommended so the chicken cooks through evenly and sits a little straighter on the burger. But if you skipped this step, it wouldn’t be a deal breaker.

2. Trim the chicken to the size of the buns, or larger, if you want! It will shrink a touch when it cooks but the crunchy nubbly bits add size.

3. Marinade – Mix the buttermilk, salt and egg. Then add the chicken and toss to coat. Marinate for at least 3 hours, or up to 24 hours. Don’t go much beyond 24 hours, it actually over marinades and makes the texture of the chicken too much like the cold cut chicken slices you buy at the deli. Still nice, but it does change the chicken texture.

4. Crunchy coating – Mix together the flour, cornflour/cornstarch and all the spices.

PS There is no spice mix in the marinade because there is a ton in the coating which is where you want a punch of flavour. If it was in the marinade too, then the whole chicken just tastes the same all the way through. The contrast between chicken flavour inside and intense coating is nicer. KFC tastes like ours ie you can’t taste the seasoning inside the chicken, just on the coating.

5. Marinade flour clumps – This is the trick to the ultra crunchy chicken! Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the marinade into the flour mixture then use your fingers to mix it in. The flour will form little clumps.

   When this sticks to the chicken, it fries up into ultra crunchy nubbly bits. This is what makes this chicken so crunchy! See my Fried Chicken recipe for musings and ravings about this method. Thanks Kenji!

6. Coat the chicken in the flour mixture just prior to frying. Don’t do this in advance and leave it lying around, the chicken will sweat and make the flour soggy.

7. Look at all those clumps! Express pass to crunchy town!

8. Fry in oil for 4 minutes or until golden and crunchy, then drain on paper towels.

   Cooking vessel & oil amount – You will need 2.5cm / 1″ of oil in whatever cooking vessel you use, so the chicken is elevated off the base and will fry evenly all the way around. A heavy based pot like a dutch oven is ideal for safety, even distribution of heat and also because it retains heat well.

   Oil temp – The oil temperature should be 180C/350F. If you don’t have a thermometer (I use a Thermapen) then test by throwing in a small cube of bread. At 180C/350F it should turn golden in 15 seconds. OR stick a bamboo chopstick in and touch the base of the pot – if bubbles immediately rise from floor of pot, oil is hot enough.

   Keeping cooked pieces warm – Because the thin pieces of chicken cook in just 4 minutes, you won’t need an oven to keep the cooked pieces warm. Batch 1 will still be hot when you finish batch 2. However if you are scaling up, keep cooked chicken warm in a 50C/125F pre-heated oven on a rack set over a tray (so the underside doesn’t go soggy).

   ⚠️ Do not touch the chicken for the first 90 seconds, to give the crust a chance to adhere.

Assembling the chicken burgers

1. Garlic mayo – Mix the mayonnaise with grated garlic. Do this at least 15 minutes ahead to give the flavours a chance to meld.

2. Spread the mayo on the lid and base of lightly toasted buns. You can toast in the oven, under a grill or just put the cut face down in a pan on the stove.

3. Assemble – Pile lettuce on the base, top with tomato if using, then chicken, gherkins then the lid.

4. Eating time! Sink your teeth into the burgers while hot and crunchy!

Love to know what you think if you try this! Hand on heart, this really is far superior to KFC burgers. I am not one to shy away from going public with Shameful Food I love (oh, I’ve been busted doing midnight kebab runs multiple times!). But KFC burgers is one thing you will never catch me eating!! – Nagi x

PS If you make a side of homemade fries to serve with these burgers, I’ll be impressed. And if you do a full-blown homemade KFC spread by adding Coleslaw plus Potato and Gravy, I’ll be seriously impressed!

Complete your Homemade KFC spread!

Perfect Crispy French fries

Coleslaw

KFC Potato and Gravy recipe

Fried Chicken

Watch how to make it

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Ultra Crunchy Fried Chicken Burger

Recipe video above. KFC, eat your heart out! Our Fried Chicken Burger is way crunchier than yours, the chicken is way juicier and it tastes way better! The trick is to mix a bit of marinade into the flour coating – this creates lumps that fries up into an awesome ultra crunchy crust. See my Fried Chicken recipe for ravings and musings about this method. (Thanks Kenji!)

Course Main

Cuisine Western

Keyword crunchy chicken burger, fried chicken burger, KFC burger

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Marinating 3 hours hours

Total Time 3 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 730cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Chicken choices:

• 2 x 250g/8oz chicken breast (I use this)
• 4 boneless thigh fillets

Marinade:

• 3/4 cup buttermilk (Note 1 for sub)
• 1 1/2 tsp cooking / kosher salt
• 1 large egg

Burgers:

• 4 soft buns , split and lightly toasted (mine are 10cm/4″)
• 2 – 3 cups iceberg lettuce , finely sliced (or other leafy greens of choice)
• 2 tomatoes , sliced (optional, sometimes I do)
• 2 gherkins / dill pickles , sliced on an angle

Garlic mayo:

• 2/3 cup mayonnaise , preferably whole egg
• 3/4 tsp garlic , finely grated (1 clove)

Crunchy coating:

• 3/4 cup flour , plain / all purpose
• 1/4 cup corn flour / cornstarch

Fried chicken seasoning:

• 1/4 tsp celery salt (or heaped 1/8 tsp celery seed)
• 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (inc to 1/2 tsp for spicy ZINGER burger!)
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp mustard powder
• 1/4 tsp ginger powder
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
• 1 1/2 tsp black pepper

To fry:

• 3 cups vegetable oil (or canola or peanut) (2.5cm/1″ depth in cooking vessel)

Cups – Metric

Instructions

• Shortform recipe:
• Pound chicken to 1cm / 0.4" thickness, trim, marinade 3 – 24 hrs. Mix coating and seasoning, mix in 2 tbsp marinade. Coat chicken, fry at 180°C/350°F for 4 min (don't touch for first 90 sec). Assemble!
• Full instructions:
• Chicken – Cover the chicken with a freezer bag or plastic sheet and pound to 1cm / 0.4" even thickness. Trim to just a touch larger than the size of your bun. Save off-cuts for another use (stir fry – or Dozer, in my case!).
• Marinade – Whisk Marinade ingredients in a bowl. Add chicken, toss. Marinate in the fridge for 3 hours minimum, to overnight (don't go beyond 24 hrs).
• Garlic mayo – Mix in a small bowl and refrigerate until required.
• Prepare crunchy coating – Mix flour, cornflour and Seasoning ingredients in a bowl. Drizzle over 2 tablespoons of the marinade, then use fingers to mix through to form lumps – when this sticks to the chicken, it fries up into awesome crunchy bits!!
• Heat oil in a large heavy based pot over medium high heat to 180°C/350°F (Note 2).
• Coat chicken – Pick up a piece of chicken and allow excess marinade to drip off. Press to coat in flour coating. Shake off excess, then fry for 2 minutes on each side until golden. DO NOT TOUCH for the first 90 seconds to allow the coating to adhere. I fry 2 at a time. Drain on paper towels, cook remaining chicken.
• Assemble – Smear garlic mayo on the top and bottom of the buns. Pile lettuce on the base, top with tomato if using. Then chicken, gherkins and put the lid on. Sink your teeth into it immediately and enjoy!

Notes

1. Buttermilk is the traditional marinating ingredient for Southern Fried Chicken. Find it in near milk in large grocery stores. Sub with 1/2 cup yogurt + 1/4 cup milk, it works nearly as well (yogurt is an excellent marinading ingredient). Next best sub: stir 1 1/2 tsp white vinegar into milk, leave 10 minutes. Will curdle. Use per recipe.

2. Frying vessel – I feel safe using a heavy cast iron pot. For most oil efficiency, use a wok – shape means you will use about 30% less oil with same surface area for frying. If you have a deep fryer, I salute you!

Oil temperature – use a thermometer. If you don’t have one, test by throwing in a small cube of bread, at 180C/350F it should turn golden in 15 seconds. OR stick a bamboo chopstick in and touch the base of the pot – if bubbles immediately rise from floor of pot, oil is hot enough.

3. Re-using oil – The oil gets a little too dirty with fried chicken, because of the heavy seasoning in the coating. You could re-use it once more for another batch of this recipe, but I wouldn’t use it for another recipe.

4. Leftover cooked chicken will keep for 3 days but, well, you know. Soggy.

Nutrition per burger. Estimate assuming 1 tablespoon of the oil is absorbed into the chicken coating and takes into account residual flour and marinade that is discarded.

Nutrition

Calories: 730cal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 48g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 22g | Monounsaturated Fat: 17g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 121mg | Sodium: 1615mg | Potassium: 717mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 982IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 120mg | Iron: 4mg

Life of Dozer

Explanation of his forlorn look: He’s not allowed in the kitchen when I deep fry. So he slunk off outside for a snooze. By the time he woke up and waddled back inside, the burgers were long gone and I was roasting vegetables. Explanation complete.

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