Try this Hawaiian Garlic Chicken recipe, or contribute your own.
- Carbohydrate 160.508620087524 g
- Cholesterol 564.72250065 mg
- Fat 40.4927925289963 g
- Fiber 2.17919991524324 g
- Protein 138.451071071099 g
- Saturated Fat 8.7898135540851 g
- Serving Size 1 1 recipe (1114g)
- Sodium 57904.5388906754 mg
- Sugar 158.329420172281 g
- Trans Fat 5.67598845303609 g
- Calories 1580 calories
Step-by-step
- In a medium pot, combine sauce ingredients and bring to a boil, then simmer until sugar dissolves.
- Remove from heat and set aside.
- Taste garlic sauce and adjust ingredients to you liking.
- Mix together flour, cornstarch, salt and pepper.
- Marinade a little garlic sauce with chicken.
- Then coat in flour mixture.
- Deep fry chicken until cooked through.
- Shake off excess oil and immediately dip chicken in sauce and place on serving platter.
Home cooks frequently commit the error of frying chicken straight from the refrigerator, which drops oil temperature rapidly and leads to a soggy crust instead of a shatteringly crisp exterior. Achieving the proper texture requires chicken pieces at ambient temperature so moisture does not violently flash-boil upon contact with the hot oil. Maintaining oil around 375 degrees Fahrenheit ensures the starch and flour matrix dehydrates instantly, creating an impermeable barrier that locks in natural juices while external heat works inward.
The culinary identity of this dish rests heavily on the Maillard reaction, occurring when proteins and reducing sugars in the shoyu and flour brown under heat to develop savory depth. A substantial quantity of minced garlic introduces allicin compounds into the sauce, which mellow during the simmer phase while retaining a sharp, pungent backbone. Sesame oil provides lipid-soluble flavor molecules that coat the palate differently than neutral frying oils, lingering long after the initial bite.
Fresh garlic yields a brighter, more assertive sulfur profile due to intact enzyme structures, whereas pre-minced jarred garlic relies on citric acid for preservation, which mutes those vibrant aromatics significantly. Similarly, employing authentic brewed shoyu rather than heavily adulterated chemical soy sauces supplies naturally occurring glutamates that interact with the added sugar to balance salinity.
Coating the pieces immediately after frying while residual surface oil is still active promotes optimal sauce adhesion. Tossing the hot protein directly into the warm liquid causes the starches on the exterior to hydrate rapidly, absorbing just enough glaze to cling without disintegrating the crunchy shell.
