Come over here and lemme tell you somethin’ buddy. Lemme tell you a quick story about how good this recipe is.

The crunch, the tenderness, I’m at a lost for words. I mean, this very well might just be the absolute crunchiest and most flavorful fried chicken tenders I’ve had in my life. One may even say another magnum opus of mine, hell, this could top “The Blacksmith” recipe I made a while back.

As I’ve said previously, this website is pretty much to help those who are craving comfort (which who isn’t). I do warn you though. Once you make this recipe, this will be the only thing you’re craving for a while. Shit, the crunch might be so crazy, it’ll do that annoying cut you get sometimes when you get a potato chip. I promise you though, it’s definitely worth it, and I hope you enjoy every bite!

Estimated Cooking Time (Excluding Marination & Resting):

30 – 45 minutes for 6 fried chicken tenders

Ingredients:

Buttermilk Marinade:

• 2 medium sized cuts of Chicken (It can be breast, thigh, or drumstick. I personally did breast)
• 2 cups Buttermilk
  • If you don’t have buttermilk, or would rather make your own, just do…
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tbsp Kosher Salt
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp ground white pepper
• 1 tbsp ground ginger
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp granulated sugar
• 2 tsp Old Bay (optional)
• 2-3 tsp MSG
• 1 tbsp gochujang paste

Dredge:

• 1 cup white rice flour
• 1 cup potato starch
• 1 /3 cup cornstarch
• pinch of baking powder
• 1 tsp fine salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp MSG
• 3 tbsp very fine panko
• a few drips of the buttermilk marinade

Thin Batter:

• 3/4 cup ice-cold sparkling water (club soda)
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup white rice flour
• 1/4 cup potato starch
• Pinch of baking powder

Korean BBQ Sauce:

• 1/4 cup soy sauce ( Jin Ganjang, Dark Soy Sauce, or Kikkoman)
• 1/2 tbsp smoky bbq sauce (optional)
• 2 tbsp Korean chili sauce (gochujang)
• 1/4 cup honey or rice syrup
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp neutral oil
• 2 tbsp minced ginger
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 tbsp mirin
• 2 tbsp Korean Chili Flakes (gochugaru)
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar (or 1 tbsp of lemon juice)
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• Green Onions (garnish)
• Toasted Sesame Seeds (garnish)

Tips:

• Overnight MINIMUM for the buttermilk brine. There is no compromise.
• When making the sauce, salt to taste at the very last step. We’re already adding soy sauce to it, so sodium is most certainly present. You want it to be a subtle hint of salt, but the sweet and spicy should hit your first.
• I bolded “paste” and “sauce” on purpose. Try to find gochujang paste for the marinade, and gochujang sauce for the BBQ sauce. If you can’t find (or would rather use one cause it be like that sometimes), just go for the “sauce” rather than the paste. The paste can have a strong, salty, umami, and odd after tone that will hit you like a truck when making the sauce. I figured that out the hard way.
• To get the best crunch, make sure your thin batter is as cold as possible, and your club soda isn’t flat.
• When coating, do the chicken pieces one-by-one to make sure you don’t mess up. I don’t suggest you dry and do it all in one unless you have extra hands, or confident in what you’re doing.
• I recommend that you let the floured chicken sit before frying. However, it doesn’t have to be really long. Some people online would say overnight, I’d say an hour in the refrigerator at most in all honesty.
• In the majority of cases where your sauce is a little bit different than you expected… here’s my general rule of thumb. At most, these are tablespoons, and these should be micro adjustments. If it’s so far off that adding these adjustments really didn’t change anything, it’d be better to start over, or just do a different sauce.
  • Too Sweet: Add a bit more vinegar
  • Too Salty: Add a bit more honey
  • Too Thick: Add a splash of water

Steps:

Chicken Brine:

• Step 1: Whisk all the ingredients (excluding the chicken) together in a large bowl. Make sure the paste is fully incorporated with the brine, and there should be no noticeable red clumps
• Step 2: Add your chicken pieces until they’re fully submerged. Leave it in the refrigerator for 12 – 24 hours.

Dredge and Chicken Prep:

• Step 1: Set up the dredge first by combining all of ingredients in a bowl, and whisk thoroughly so it’s a uniform powder.
• Step 2: Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and pat them very dry with paper towels. Surface dryness is crucial in making sure the fried chicken actually retains its coating.
• Step 3: Add in a few drops of the buttermilk marinade to the batter. You don’t have to mix it, just add in a few drops.

Thin Batter:

• Step 1: Combine all the ingredients in the thin batter and whisk quickly. It should be thin, and not a pancake-batter kind of thick.

Coating Process:

• Step 1: Lightly dust the chicken pieces first with a tablespoon of the dry dredge, and shake off the excess.
• Step 2: Dip each piece into the ice-cold batter, let the excess drip off for around a couple seconds
• Step 3: Place the piece back into the dredge and press firmly. You want even, thin coverage, not a clumpy crust. Tap off the excess dredge, and let the chicken rest on a wire rack for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.

Frying Process:

• Step 1: In a deep fryer with neutral oil, fry in small batches anywhere between 300 and 320°F for around 6 – 8 minutes for bone in, 4-6 for boneless.
• Step 2: Once cooked, remove and let it rest on a wire rack for around 6 – 10 minutes.
• Step 3: Raise the oil temperature to 375 – 400°F, and fry again for around 2 – 3 minutes until deep golden and glassy. Again, remove to a rack, and do not stack it.

Korean BBQ Sauce

• Step 1: In a saucepan over medium low, with a tablespoon of oil, add in garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant.
• Step 2: Add in Gochujang, BBQ sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, honey/rice syrup, mirin, rice vinegar, and gochugaru. Whisk until smooth
• Step 3: Bring the pot to a gentle simmer and cook for around 5 – 7 minutes. Stir often, and the sauce should look glossy and coat the back of the spoon. If it gets too thick, add 1 tbsp of water at a time.
• Step 4: Remove from heat and stir in toasted sesame oil. The sauce should still be hot when applying to the chicken.
• Step 5: Brush the sauce on the chicken, or put it in a wide bowl and toss it with the chicken quickly (for a couple seconds). Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and a few chopped green onions for a final garnish.