Hurts So Good Chicken Recipe
- By Amy Dong
- Published Jan. 12, 2016
- Updated Aug. 17, 2022
This recipe is aptly dubbed “Hurts So Good Chicken” for a reason. People tend to eat and eat til it hurts…in a deliciously good way.
We loved so many things about the cozy church we attended back in sunny So. Cal.
The awesome friendships, learning, music, and myriads of Littles running wildly happy were some of our favorite things.
But I gotta just say it. You know where this is going: the food. {Oh, the food.} People there could cook up a marvelous storm, as evidenced by the mouthwatering potlucks we frequently enjoyed.
Several of my go-to recipes originated from friends who shared their tried-and-true recipes. Recipes like this succulent Teriyaki Meatloaf and these irresistible Red Bean Mochi Bars.
And this Hurts So Good Chicken? You’d never guess who I adapted this recipe from…
This Hurts So Good Chicken recipe hails from one of the college guys. Yeah, boy-men can cook.
After one of the famous potlucks, all the moms couldn’t stop asking about that one chicken dish. Thankfully, college guys are super generous with sharing their mama’s best recipes. The rest is history.
By the way, I didn’t title this dish. College Guy did. Seems whenever they made this chicken dish in their apartment, the guys crowded around and ate ’til their stomachs hurt. In a good way.
Looks like that traditional will continue on in my own boys…they could not stop feasting on this chicken. They ate til their stomachs were F-U-L-L.
Maybe they’ll pass this recipe around once they’re off to college someday.
Enjoy.
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Hurts So Good Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 TB Mochiko flour, glutinous or "sweet" rice flour
- 3 TB all purpose flour
- 5 TB cornstarch
- 4 TB granulated sugar
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- ½ cup chopped scallions
- 4 TB Asian toasted sesame oil, found in Asian aisle of grocery stores
- 3 TB oyster sauce
- 6 TB regular soy sauce
- 1 tsp table salt
- 1 tsp white pepper
- 5 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces
- oil for frying, peanut or vegetable oil work well
Optional Dipping Sauce:
- ⅓ cup light soy sauce
- ⅓ cup Mirin
- 1 tsp Asian toasted sesame oil
- 1 tsp Sriracha
- Optional Garnish: chopped scallions and toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Do ahead: Mix together first 12 ingredients in a large bowl, whisking to combine well. Towel-dry the chicken and use a fork to poke throughout all chicken pieces. Add chicken to the bowl of sauce mixture, coating completely. Cover and marinate 12 hours or overnight.
- If desired, make the Optional Dipping Sauce by combining sauce ingredients and whisking together. Set aside until ready to use.
- Line a large baking sheet with paper towels. Heat a generous amount of oil in a large heavy pan (oil should go deep enough to completely submerge chicken pieces.) Once oil reaches 350F, fry chicken pieces in batches until golden brown on all sides - do not over crowd. Adjust heat as needed to keep oil temp as close to 350F as possible. Use tongs to turn pieces over as needed. Once chicken is golden and floats to top, it's done. Drain on paper towels. Continue frying in batches. Serve warm, garnished with chopped scallions and sesame seeds if desired. Serve with or without dipping sauce.
Notes
Nutrition (per serving)
Source: Chew Out Loud
Chicken Flair for Dinner:
