This Thai Fried Chicken recipe produces tender, juicy chicken wings with incredibly crispy shells. It is quick and easy to make and turns out great every time.
My children request this Thai fried chicken at least once a week. Yes, it's that good! It's taken years for me to perfect this recipe, although the recipe itself is very easy.
Here's the back story:
Almost 16 years ago, my husband spent a year in Thailand for work. While there, he had the opportunity to eat all sorts of delicious Thai foods. And he certainly did his best at eating through the Bangkok food scene. But at least once a week, when I'd ask him what wonderful Thai foods he had eaten that day, his answer would be "Gai Tod", aka Thai fried chicken.
He loves Thai fried chicken so much that when he came back home, he asked me to try to recreate it for him. After much experimentation, I came up with a recipe that I posted on the blog ten years ago. That first version is definitely a respectable Thai fried chicken recipe. But over the course of the last ten years I've had the chance to work on it a bit more.
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How the Recipe Evolved
The change that makes the biggest difference is the use of Gogi tempura flour instead of wheat flour in the batter. Gogi tempura flour is commonly used as a stand alone batter for frying food in Thailand. Its main ingredient is wheat flour, but it also contains tapioca starch, modified tapioca starch, baking powder, salt, and MSG. I've found that adding this tempura mixture to rice flour and baking soda makes for a wonderfully crunchy, super crisp Thai fried chicken.
In addition to changing the batter, I have simplified the marinade significantly. My former Thai fried chicken recipe used the traditional garlic / white peppercorn / cilantro root mixture to season the chicken. Nowadays, I simply marinate the chicken with a few dashes of fish sauce. The fish sauce provides a great salty umami flavor without much hassle.
This new Thai fried chicken recipe is quick and easy to make, and it turns out perfectly every time. My Thai husband and I both love it, and our children eagerly gobble it up every time I make it. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
What do you need to make Thai fried chicken?
Gogi tempura flour (แป้งเทมปุระ): This flour mixture is commonly used as a stand alone batter for frying food in Thailand. Its main ingredients are wheat flour, tapioca starch, modified tapioca starch, baking powder, salt, and MSG.
Rice flour: Rice flour is the key ingredient that helps the chicken to be very crispy and light. It also helps the chicken stay crispy for several hours after cooking. It absorbs less oil than other flours while frying, which results in a less oily fried chicken.
Salt: Salt is included in the Gogi tempura batter, but I've found that a little extra gives just the right flavor.
Baking soda: Baking soda acts as a leavening agent in this batter, adding a light airiness to the fried chicken.
Fish sauce: Fish sauce is used as a marinade for the chicken itself rather than including it in the batter. You can use a fork to poke holes in the chicken skin and really get the fish sauce into the chicken for the most flavor.
How do you make Thai fried chicken?
Making Thai fried chicken with this recipe is fairly quick and easy. First, heat your pot of oil over medium high heat until the oil is ready. Wash your chicken pieces under running water and then pat dry. Add fish sauce and use a fork to poke the skin of the chicken to help the fish sauce really get into the chicken and infuse its umami flavor.
While the chicken pieces are marinating in the fish sauce, make your batter. Combine all batter ingredients with water and mix until the batter is formed. Be sure not to overmix the batter. Dip the chicken pieces in the batter until they are well coated and then allow them to fry for ~12 to 15 minutes until they are cooked through and the batter is golden brown.
How do you season Thai fried chicken?
This base recipe makes a perfectly crispy, slightly salty fried chicken every time. If you prefer, you could certainly marinate the chicken in the traditional garlic / white peppercorn / cilantro root mixture instead of just fish sauce. Alternatively, you could add red curry paste to the batter for a little kick of spice. It does take quite a bit of curry paste for the spice to shine through, so be generous (at least 2 Tablespoons) if you go this route.
And of course, once your fried chicken is cooked, serving it with nam jim gai (chicken dipping sauce) is key!
So there you have it! A quick and easy recipe for Thai fried chicken that results in a perfectly crispy outside with tender, juicy chicken inside every time. I hope you give it a try and love it as much as our family does!
Recipe
Thai Fried Chicken | Gai Tod | ไก่ทอด
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoon Gogi tempura flour
- 6 tablespoon rice flour
- 10 tablespoon water
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 pounds chicken wings
- ¼ cup chicken dipping sauce (Nam Jim Gai)
- 1 cucumber (optional)
Instructions
- Fill a large pot or wok with canola oil about ¾ inch deep. Turn the heat on to medium-high and allow the oil to heat up while preparing the chicken.
- Place your chicken wings in a bowl and rinse thoroughly with running water. Pour off any remaining water. Add the fish sauce. Using a fork, poke the chicken wings to allow the fish sauce to permeate the skin. Set aside to prepare the batter.
- Combine all dry ingredients for the batter (Gogi flour, rice flour, salt, baking soda), then add water. Mix until the batter is smooth without lumps.
- Once your oil is ready for frying, coat your marinated chicken wings with the batter and place in the hot oil. Allow to fry for 12-15 minutes until the chicken is thoroughly cooked and the outside is a crisp golden brown. Take the chicken wings out and place on a paper towel lined plate.
- Serve with a side of cucumber slices and chicken dipping sauce. Enjoy!
Princess Peach
This is such an easy and tasty treat! I made half of the batch according to this recipe and to the other half, I put Laab seasoning to make it spicy. The spicy batch was gone before I knew it. Thank you for the recipe!
Rachel
So glad to hear it! Adding larb seasoning sounds delicious...
Robert Christmas
The gogi and rice flour were a little hard to source in my area, but well worth the hunt, after making these which are so simple and minimal cost of ingredients(if you can find the gogi and such!) that it's a no Brainer to use, they come out super crispy and delicious great naked or tossed in various wing sauces such as Buffalo or bbq
admin
So glad to hear it! Thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂
Lucabet
One of my favorie recipe, thanks you and keep it going !
Spring
Can I have the old recipe please? I feel that they turned out more tasty for my Asian palate LoL.
admin
Hi Spring! Of course - here's the old recipe:
Marinade Ingredients:
• 2 pounds chicken wings / drumsticks
• 1 head of garlic
• 2 teaspoons coriander seeds
• 1 tablespoon ground white pepper
• 2 tablespoons cilantro root/stem, chopped finely
• 3 teaspoons fish sauce
• 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoons red chili powder
Batter Ingredients:
• 3/4 cup rice flour
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1.5 cups water
Instructions:
1. Combine the garlic, coriander seeds, white pepper, cilantro root/stems, and fish sauce in a large mortar and pestle and grind until they become a paste. If you don't have a mortar and pestle, a small blender will work as well.
2. Marinate the chicken with this paste, the oyster sauce, and the red chili powder in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour and up to several days.
3. When you're ready to fry, heat oil in a large pan or deep fryer to 350 degrees. Prepare the batter by mixing all ingredients until they form a somewhat watery batter. Dip the chicken in the batter and immediately fry in the hot oil until done, approximately 12-15 minutes.
Lucy
What happened to your fried chicken drumstick recipe 🙁