KFC (Korean Fried Cauliflower)

Matt Abergel

Matt Abergel

8th November 2018
Matt Abergel

KFC (Korean Fried Cauliflower)

This is my Korean Fried Cauliflower recipe from my book "Chicken and Charcoal"

Ingredients

  • 12 florets Cauliflower cut into 25g
  • 20g Salt
  • 3 litres Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
  • 3g White sesame seeds, to garnish
  • (1⁄8 of a lime), to serve 1 Lime wedge
  • For the KFC batter

  • 400g Yardbird Chicken Flour Mix
  • 400g Tempura Batter
  • For the KFC sauce
  • 100g Garlic cloves
  • 500g Sugar
  • 50g Mirin
  • 150g Korean chili paste
  • 250g Red yuzu kosho

Method

. First, make the KFC batter. Whisk all the ingredients with 480 ml ice- cold water until smooth. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to use. 

. To make the KFC sauce, blend the garlic with 1.5 liters almost boiling water until smooth. Place the garlic paste in a pan with the sugar, mirin, Korean chili paste, and red yuzu kosho, then mix well. Reduce over a low heat for 1–3 hours, stirring frequently, until the mixture has the consistency of a thick barbecue sauce. 

. Soak the cauliflower florets in
2 liters water and the salt for 1 hour. Just before cooking, remove the cauliflower from the saltwater solution and put in the batter, completely coating each floret. 

. Heat the vegetable oil in a deep fryer, or a deep saucepan, to 350°F/180°C. One by one, carefully drop the battered cauliflower florets into the hot oil, making sure that the pieces don’t stick to the bottom of the fryer or to each other. Once all the florets are in the fryer, fish out any stray bits of batter. Fry the florets until they are deep brown in color, about 3 minutes.
. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a wire rack, then on a paper towel. Transfer the cauliflower to
a bowl. Immediately cover with a generous amount of room- temperature KFC sauce.
. To serve, stack the sauce-smothered cauliflower florets in a serving bowl. Garnish liberally with the white sesame seeds and a lime wedge. Eat while hot.

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