June 5, 2025

Gluten Free Karaage Chicken with Sriracha Mayo

I’ve had Karaage Chicken a few times before at a restaurant in CT with my friend Susan before I was fully gluten free. But the other day I was in Washington DC visiting Lindsey (my daughter) and we went to a restaurant that served the most delicious gluten free Karaage chicken. Wow! This recipe had to find its way onto the GFchow website. So here it is…Gluten Free Karaage Chicken with Sriracha Mayo. I’m OBSESSED!!

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Ingredients for the Chicken and Sauce

ingredients - chicken thighs with skin, potato starch, white rice flour, gluten free soy sauce, fresh ginger, garlic, sake, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.

ingredients for the dipping sauce - Kewpie mayo, sriracha, and lemon.

Organize the ingredients for the chicken and dipping sauce. For the chicken, it’s chicken thighs with skin, potato starch, white rice flour, gluten free soy sauce, fresh ginger, garlic, sake, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. For the sauce, you’ll need Kewpie mayo, Sriracha, and lemon juice.

Making the Sauce

Combine the mayo, sriracha and lemon and mix well. Set aside.

Combine the Kewpie mayo, Sriracha and lemon juice and mix well. Set aside.

Marinating the Chicken

Place cut up chicken thighs in the marinade. Combine and let sit for 30-60 mins.

In a large bowl (one that is big enough to fit the chicken!) combine the gluten free soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and sake. Mix well. Place chicken thighs in the marinade. Combine and let sit for 30-60 mins in the refrigerator. Once the chicken has marinated either drain the marinade from the chicken or use tongs and remove chicken from the marinade and place chicken on a plate.

Dredging the Chicken

Place 4-5 chicken pieces into the potato starch mixture and cover pieces fully and then shake off any excess starch.

In a medium bowl, combine potato starch and rice flour. Place 4-5 chicken pieces into the potato starch mixture and cover pieces fully and then shake off any excess starch.

Cooking the Chicken

Place oil in a 3 1/2 quart pot. Insert a thermometer and heat oil over medium-high heat to 350 degrees. Once oil is heated, carefully add the chicken pieces in batches, monitoring the oil temperature as you go. — #1 Fry

Line a baking sheet with foil and some paper towels which will absorb the oil and make for an easier clean up. Then place a rack inside of the baking sheet. Keep the baking sheet close to the stove. Cook chicken for 90 seconds. Set a timer. As each batch is cooked place chicken on the rack. This first round of frying is to cook the chicken. NOTE: Once all of the chicken is cooked for the first round, use a fine-mesh sieve (or a similar device) to remove any small bits of cooked crumbs which will keep the oil clean. Omitting this step may result in the oil getting darker. — #1 Fry

Before cooking the chicken, line a baking sheet with foil and some paper towels which will absorb the oil (and make for an easier clean up!). Then place a rack inside of the baking sheet. Keep the baking sheet close to the stove.

#1 Fry: Carefully place the chicken into the heated oil. Cook chicken for 90 seconds. Set a timer! As each batch is cooked place chicken on the rack. The first round of frying is to cook the chicken.

NOTE: Once all of the chicken is cooked for the first round, use a fine-mesh sieve (or a similar device) to remove any small bits of cooked crumbs which will keep the oil clean. Omitting this step may result in the oil getting darker.

#2 Fry: Increase the heat and bring the oil to 360º degrees. Once the oil temperature is reached, begin the second round of frying, placing batches of 4-5 pieces of chicken in the oil for approximately 60 seconds or until chicken pieces are ultra crispy and golden brown. The second round of frying is to crisp the chicken. As before, transfer chicken to the wire rack to drain excess oil.

Gluten Free Karaage Chicken with Sriracha Mayo

Once all chicken pieces have been crisped up, transfer chicken to a platter or bowl, garnish as desired and serve with Sriracha Mayo. You’re in for a delicious treat! The chicken will be juicy on the inside and extra crunchy on the outside.

Print Recipe

Gluten Free Karaage Chicken with Sriracha Mayo

Prep Time35

Cook Time15

Marination Time1

Total Time1 50

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Japanese

Keyword: chicken thighs, fresh ginger, garlic, gluten free, gluten free soy sauce, kewpie mayonnaise, lemon, peanut oil, potato starch, rice flour, sake, sriracha

Servings: 4 people

Author: GFchow @ gfchow.com

Equipment

Thermometer for Frying

Ingredients

1 1/4 lbs boneless skin-on chicken thighs, approximately 4 thighs, excess fat trimmed and each thigh cut into 6 or so equal-sized pieces (boneless, skinless can also be used)
Pinch of kosher salt
few grinds of freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons potato starch (if you don't have potato starch, substitute with cornstarch)
1 1/2 tablespoons rice flour
5 cups peanut oil neutral oil is ok too

For the Marinade

2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger from an approximate 2” piece of ginger root or 2 cubes of frozen Trader Joe's ginger, defrosted
1 clove garlic finely minced
2 tablespoons sake (a Japanese wine) can substitute rice wine vinegar or dry sherry
2 tablespoons gluten-free soy sauce I use San-J

Sriracha Mayo Sauce

1/4 cup Kewpie mayonnaise a Japanese brand pronounce Q-P, found at most markets, asian markets, and online. In a pinch substitute with regular mayo.
2 teaspoons Sriracha
Squeeze of fresh lemon
Aleppo Pepper optional

Instructions

Sriracha Mayo

Mix mayonnaise, Sriracha, and lemon juice together in a small bowl. Finish with Aleppo pepper, if desired. Set aside.

Marinating and Cooking the Chicken

In a large bowl, whisk or mix together the ginger, garlic, sake, and gluten-free soy sauce.
Add the chicken to the marinade and season with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Mix chicken with the marinade using tongs, making sure chicken is thoroughly coated. Set aside for 30 to 60 minutes in the refrigerator.
In the meantime, combine potato starch and rice flour in a medium bowl,.
Place oil in a 3 1/2 quart pot. Insert a thermometer and heat oil over medium-high heat to 350 degrees. (It can take 15-20 minutes for the oil to heat up.)
Line a baking sheet with foil and some paper towels which will absorb the oil and make for an easier clean up. Then place a rack inside of the baking sheet. Keep the baking sheet close to the stove.
When the oil begins to heat up, remove the chicken from the marinade. As the thermometer is getting close to 350 degrees, coat 4-5 pieces with the potato starch mixture.
The chicken pieces will be cooked 2x. The first time is to cook the chicken and the second round is for the crispy, crunch factor.

Round 1

Carefully place the chicken pieces into the oil and cook for 90 seconds, or until the chicken is a light golden color. Set a timer. Continue working with 4-5 pieces at a time. (Working with a few pieces at a time, helps maintain the oil temperature.) As you cook each batch, you may need to adjust the temperature of the oil so keep an eye on the thermometer. Transfer chicken to the wire rack and repeat until all pieces are coated and cooked.
Once all of the chicken is cooked for the first round, use a fine-mesh sieve (or a similar device) to remove any small bits of cooked crumbs which will keep the oil clean. Omitting this step may result in the oil getting darker.

Round 2

Increase the heat and bring the oil to 360º degrees. Once the oil temperature is reached, begin placing 4-5 pieces in the oil again, for approximately 60 seconds or until ultra crispy and golden brown. Transfer chicken to the wire rack to drain excess oil.

Serving

Once all chicken pieces have been fried 2x, transfer chicken to a platter or bowl, garnish as desired and serve with Sriracha Mayo. Serve hot!

Notes

I experimented with air frying the chicken and just couldn’t replicate the crispiness of the double deep fry.

If you prefer to cook fewer batches of the chicken pieces, consider using a dutch oven. Keep in mind, you’ll need to use much more oil because the chicken must be fully submerged in the oil.

Boneless chicken breasts can be substituted for the thighs but the chicken may be a bit on the drier side.

Recipe inspired by a meal at Perry’s Restaurant in Adams Morgan with Lindsey and Peter. Followed a recipe by Just onecookbook.com.

If you like this GFchow recipe, you may also like these other recipes. Nori-Wrapped Crispy Tofu Bites with Dipping Sauce, Korean Scallion and Leek Crispy Mini Pancakes, and Crispy Vietnamese Wings.

GLUTEN FREE DISCLAIMER

The recipes you find here are considered by me to be gluten free. However, it is up to you to make sure the ingredients you use are gluten free. Whenever possible, I will list specific brands of ingredients that I use, but always be sure to check the labels yourself to verify the item is gluten free.