Chicken Tempura (Toriten) is a staple of Oita’s cuisine and considered the region’s soul food. This Japanese-style fried chicken features tender chicken marinated in soy sauce, garlic, and ginger, then coated in a tempura batter that fries up crispy and fluffy. Serve with ponzu, vinegar-soy sauce, and spicy mustard!
Table of Contents
What is Toriten?
Toriten, or chicken tempura, is a signature dish of Oita Prefecture, located in the Kyushu region of Japan. Said to be first created at the Toyoken restaurant, it features marinated chicken breast coated in a crispy and fluffy tempura batter, then deep-fried until golden. The name “Toriten” comes from the Japanese words “tori” (chicken) and “ten” (tempura). Unlike traditional tempura, which is made with seafood or vegetables, toriten uses marinated chicken for added flavor. While tempura is served with a simple dipping sauce made with dashi and soy sauce, toriten is commonly paired with a tangy vinegar-soy sauce, ponzu, or spicy mustard, enhancing its deliciously light texture.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Before diving into the recipe, here are the key ingredients you’ll need:
- Chicken breast: In Oita, chicken breast is typically used. The marinade adds flavour and the starch coating and tempura batter keeps it moist! Chicken thigh can be used as a substitute.
- Seasonings: Garlic, ginger, soy sauce, sake and black pepper. MSG is optional but adds a lot of umami.
- Potato Starch and/or Corn Starch: I like to use corn starch for coating and potato starch for the batter but these two ingredients can be used interchangably.
- Cake flour: Cake flour has less gluten which prevents the batter coating from getting chewy. You may use all purpose flour in a pinch.
- Baking powder: I often like to use beer or carbonated water for crispy tempura but found baking powder to work well for this recipe.
- Whole egg: Egg is what makes tempura more ‘fluffy’ in texture. The more egg used, the more fluffier it is (like pancake batter). If you prefer a thicker more fluffy coating, you can increase the amount of egg and reduce the amount of water. The liquid to dry ratio should be 2:1. You can also substitute the whole egg for mayo.
- Ice-cold water: Keep water in the fridge or add ice cubes to cold water. The cold water helps gluten formation when mixing the batter and the temperature difference between oil and batter makes for crispier texture.
- Beer or Carbonated water: When I have it on hand, I like to use this version because beer adds flavour and the carbonation makes it super light and crispy.
- Ice cubes: Keeps the batter cold while frying.
How to Make Chicken Tempura
- Marinate the chicken: Begin by slicing your chicken breast into strips and marinating them with ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sake, salt, pepper, and optional MSG. Let it sit for 10-15 minutes to absorb the flavors.
- Prepare the batter: Mix potato starch, cake flour, and baking powder, then add egg or mayo, ice-cold water, and gently stir. Keep the batter slightly lumpy for extra crispiness. Add ice cubes to keep the batter cold and airy. If using beer or carbonated water, mix the potato starch and flour and then stir the beer until well mixed.
- Heat the oil: Pour vegetable or canola oil into a pot, heating it to 180°C (356°F). Make sure the oil stays at this temperature throughout the frying process for crispy chicken.
- Coat the chicken: Lightly coat each piece of marinated chicken with cornstarch or potato starch, ensuring an even layer before dipping it into the batter.
- Fry the chicken: Fry the battered chicken in batches, ensuring the oil temperature doesn’t drop too much (to keep it crispy). Fry for 2-3 minutes until the coating turns golden brown.
- Drain the chicken: Place the cooked chicken on a wire rack to allow excess oil to drip off.
- Serve: Serve immediately with your favorite dipping sauces like ponzu, tentsuyu, or mustard for a tangy kick.
VIDEO: Watch How to Make It
Lisa’s Recipe Tips for Crispy Tempura
- Use cold ingredients: Cold water and ice cubes help keep the batter light and crispy.
- Don’t over mix the batter: Gently mix the batter to avoid activating too much gluten, which can make it dense. The batter should be slightly lumpy.
- Maintain oil temperature: Be careful not to overcrowd the pot when frying the chicken. Adding too many pieces at once can cause the oil temperature to drop, leading to soggy chicken. Fry in small batches to keep the oil temperature high.
Serving Suggestions
Toriten is delicious on its own due to the marinated chicken, but it tastes even better with a variety of dipping sauces and condiments:
- Kabosu: Kabosu is a Japanese citrus fruit similar to lime, often used as a garnish for Toriten. If you can’t find it, lemon is a good substitute.
- Ponzu Sauce: A tangy, citrusy soy sauce often paired with tempura.
- Tempura Dipping Sauce: A soy-based sauce made with dashi, mirin, and soy sauce.
- Vinegar Soy Sauce: A mix of soy sauce and vinegar with a 1:1 ratio.
- Karashi (Japanese Hot Mustard)
- Yuzu Kosho (Yuzu Pepper): A fragrant Japanese condiment made with yuzu citrus and chili peppers.
Toriten is perfect as a snack or side dish for a casual at-home izakaya! Serve with fresh vegetables like tomatoes, cabbage, or cucumbers, along with a side of rice and miso soup for a complete meal. It’s so flavorful that it can be enjoyed cold, making it perfect for a bento box as well.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
While chicken tempura is best enjoyed fresh, you can make extra to keep on hand and enjoy the leftovers.
- Refrigerator: Store any leftover chicken tempura in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Make sure it’s sealed tightly to maintain its flavor and crispiness.
- Freezing: To freeze, wrap the Toriten pieces tightly in cling wrap and place them into a freezer-safe bag. This will help protect the chicken from freezer burn and keep it tasting fresh when you’re ready to enjoy it again.
To reheat:
- Oven: Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F). Place the chicken on a wire rack or baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes, or until it’s heated through and crispy.
- Toaster Oven: Similar to the oven method, heat the Toriten in a toaster oven at 180°C (350°F) for 5-8 minutes until it’s crispy and hot.
- Air Fryer: Preheat the air fryer to 180°C (350°F) and cook the chicken for about 5 minutes, or until crispy.
- Microwave: Microwave for 20-30 seconds or until warm. It won’t be crispy but still flavourful!
Recipe FAQ
Soggy tempura is often the result of warm batter, oil that’s too cold, or overcrowding the frying pan. Make sure to keep the oil at the proper temperature and fry in batches to avoid these issues.
While both are Japanese fried chicken dishes, karaage typically uses a seasoned flour or cornstarch coating and is deep-fried in vegetable oil, while Toriten (chicken tempura) uses a light, fluffy tempura batter and is often served with a citrusy dipping sauce.
The difference lies in the breading: chicken katsu is coated in panko breadcrumbs, resulting in a crunchy texture, while chicken tempura (Toriten) uses a fluffier batter that gives it a lighter, crispier texture.
More Japanese Chicken Recipes
- Karaage (Japanese Fried Chicken)
- Crispy Chicken Breast Karaage
- Air Fryer Chicken Katsu
- Rice Cooker Toriniku Daikon (Chicken and Radish)
- Japanese Bang Bang Chicken
Enjoy! If you make this Chicken Tempura recipe, I’d love to hear what you think! Leave a comment and rating below, and if you share it on social media, tag me on Instagram @Okonomikitchen. I can’t wait to see your creations!
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Chicken Tempura (Toriten)
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings
Description
Chicken Tempura (Toriten) is a staple of Oita’s cuisine and considered the region’s soul food. This Japanese-style fried chicken features tender chicken marinated in soy sauce, garlic, and ginger, then coated in a tempura batter that fries up crispy and fluffy. Serve with ponzu, vinegar-soy sauce, and spicy mustard!
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 1 (300-350 g) chicken breast
- 1/2 tbsp (6 g) ginger, minced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp sake
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp msg
- 3 tbsp (30 g) corn starch
For the Batter
Option 1
- 2.5 tbsp (25 g) potato starch
- 3 tsp (25 g) cake flour or all purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp (15 g) whole egg or 2 tsp mayo
- 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp (90 ml) ice cold water
- 2 ice cubes
Option 2
- 2.5 tbsp (25 g) potato starch
- 3 tsp (25 g) cake flour or all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp (100 ml) cold beer or carbonated water
For Serving
- vinegar soy sauce (1:1 ratio of rice vinegar and Japanese soy sauce)
- tentsuyu (tempura dipping sauce)
- ponzu
- karashi (Japanese mustard)
- lemon (or kabosu)
- yuzu kosho (yuzu pepper)
Instructions
- Prepare the chicken: Open the chicken breast by laying it flat on a cutting board. Remove the chicken tender (this is one piece). Slice the chicken breast on an angle (sogigiri), vertically into strips. Each piece should be about 2 cm (3/4 inch) wide. Place the sliced chicken into a bowl and add the minced ginger, minced garlic, sake, soy sauce, salt, pepper, and MSG. Use your hands to mix well and et it marinate for 10-15 minutes.
- Heat the oil: While the chicken is marinating, pour about 2 inches of neutral oil (such as vegetable or canola oil) into a deep pot or pan. Heat the oil over medium heat until it reaches 180°C (356°F). Use a kitchen thermometer to check the temperature, or test by dropping a small amount of batter into the oil—if it sizzles and rises immediately, the oil is ready.
- Coat the chicken: Take a piece of marinated chicken and shake off any excess liquid. Lightly coat it in corn starch or potato starch, ensuring a thin, even layer. Place the coated chicken on a tray or plate. Repeat with the remaining pieces, making sure they are not clumped together.
- Make the batter:
- Option 1: In a separate bowl, sift the flour, potato starch, and baking powder together. This ensures a light, airy batter with no clumps. In another small bowl, crack an egg and whisk until smooth. Measure 1 tablespoon of the whisked egg and add it to a larger mixing bowl. Pour in cold water and whisk to combine. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Instead of whisking, gently poke at the flour with chopsticks or a spoon to incorporate it. The batter should be slightly lumpy—this helps create a crispier texture when fried.
- Option 2: In a bowl, whisk the potato starch and flour. Then mix the beer or carbonated water well. For this version, you don’t have to worry too much about over mixing but don’t mix too vigourously to maintain the carbonation.
- Fry the chicken: Add 2 ice cubes to the batter (if using) to keep it cold. Using chopsticks or a skewer, pierce through a piece of chicken and dip it into the batter, ensuring it’s fully coated. Let any excess batter drip off. Carefully place the battered chicken into the hot oil. Depending on the size of your pan, fry 3-5 pieces at a time to avoid overcrowding. I use a small 7-inch pot and fry 3 pieces at a time to reduce the amount of oil needed. Fry for 2-3 minutes or until the batter is golden and crisp. The chicken should be fully cooked but still juicy inside. Once fried, transfer the chicken to a wire rack placed vertically to allow excess oil to drip off. Avoid laying the pieces flat, as this can cause them to become soggy.
- Remove excess batter: Use a slotted mesh spoon to remove any floating batter bits from the oil after each round. Save these crispy tempura scraps for later—they can be used in soups, rice bowls, or noodle dishes! Repeat for remaining chicken.
- For leftover tempura batter: You can make tenkasu (crispy tempura bits) by dripping small amounts of batter into the oil. See my tenkasu recipe for more details.
- Serve: Serve the toriten immediately while it’s hot and crispy. Pair it with tempura dipping sauce (tentsuyu), ponzu, karashi (Japanese mustard), and a wedge of lemon. Enjoy!!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Main dish
- Method: Frying
- Cuisine: Japanese
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 400
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 900 mg
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated Fat: 3.5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 14 g
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 35 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 30 g
- Cholesterol: 1000 mg
