Alice updated..... A revised Chicken Alice Fried Chicken recipe

I had actually started a post called "Goodbye Alice".... I had finally used up the last bottle of Park's Brand Kimchee Sauce, and made my last batch of Chicken Alice Fried Chicken. If you're wondering who Chicken Alice is, and what's the big deal about her fried chicken, you can read the Honolulu Star Bulletin article from 2005 here. And if you'd like to read about how much I enjoyed Chicken Alice's Fried Chicken my original post is here. Well enough of that..... this is part of what I thought my last batch of Chicken Alice's chicken looked like:

 
There's a certain crispy-sticky texture that the batter has. Courtesy of this:

And over the years, whenever I had visitors who asked me what I wanted.... I'd say Park's Brand Kim Chee Sauce.... boy did I get some really interesting responses....... of all the things I'd want from home, it was a second rate Kim Chee base. Needing refrigeration, I knew it was a hassle getting this for me, so I decided to stop asking...... and so I thought I'd made my last batch.

Until, on a recent visit to Marukai Gardena, I spied this:

I couldn't believe my eyes...... after making sure that I wasn't suffering from some sort of dementia, I bought three bottles. You see, I'd been less than pleased with my last couple of batches.... I still enjoyed the chicken, but it tasted a bit dated. Personally, I think people enjoy bolder flavors nowadays, and this recipe was starting to be a bit..... well, "Chicken Alice a la King".... a recipe from another generation. Now that I had a decent stock on hand, I decided to experiment a bit. Recently. I've been updating my mochiko, and other chicken recipes replacing flour with rice flour, which creates a lighter, sweeter, a slightly more crisp batter. So my first shot was replacing the flour in the recipe with rice flour:

 
Based on the amount of water in the recipe, I should have known better...... the batter was too thin, and didn't adhere well to the chicken. I think I could have done some neato-Korean voodoo-Kyochon-double frying, and perhaps have gotten a better results, but I love the crunchy batter. In the end, the changes were minor. I added sugar, because I enjoy a tad more sweetness. I upped the garlic to one entire bulb. I added a teaspoon of Korean Red Chili powder for more heat, and the biggest change, to lighten up, and give me some good crispness, I added baking powder. Nothing like a bit more leavening to get things crisp and light.

Compare it to the first photo, and you'll notice a much more crunchy batter. One real serious item...... adding sugar means that these babies will burn if not tended right. I did end up double frying. The Missus, who is suffering from PPTSS (Post Poultry Tramatic Stress Syndrome, as detailed in this post), ended up taking most of the chicken to work. And I heard it went over well. 

Chicken Alice Fried Chicken revised
5 pounds chicken wings
Vegetable oil for deep frying 

Batter:
1/2 cup Parks brand kim chee sauce
1 bulb galic minced
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons salt
2-1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 cups water
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Korean Red Pepper powder (optional)

Combine kim chee sauce, garlic, salt, sugar, baking powder, and flour. Add water gradually, enough to make a thick batter, about the consistency of pancake batter.

Add chicken pieces to batter, mix well and marinate in refrigerator overnight.

Heat oil to 350 degrees.Deep-fry chicken pieces until chicken rises to surface and is light brown. Remove and cool for five minutes return to oil and fry until coating is deep brown, and chicken pieces float.It's important to keep the oil at this temperature in order to assure the perfect crisp coating.

Comments

[kat]

never tried chicken alice's but this looks really spicy and good!

[bill]

Hmmmmm give me some! ;-)
Looks good regardless and nothing beats the home cooking.

[Kirk]

Hi Kat - Strangely, in spite of looks, the recipe is not that spicy.

Hi Bill - Thanks.... I'd love to give you some.

[foodhoe]

yummy! the recipe looks simple enough and tasty - especially the marinate overnight and then fry with no extra steps.

[Dennis]

Awesome post Kirk. Loved reading that article on Alice too. I doubt you stepped foot in a Yoshinoya recently but have you tried their wings? They're very "sesame" and I find them strangely addicting... :)

[Carol]

Wooo-mama that looks delicious! I haven't made Chicken Alice wings in a long time but I'm really tempted to make a trip up to Gardena just to pick up some sauce. And lookee, right next to it is Hawaiian Chili Water!!! Double mama!!

[Kirk]

Hi FH - It is a pretty easy recipe.

Hi Dennis - I still hav never set food in a Yoshinoya..... there's something about the place that wards me off.

Hi Carol - You can make the most of your trip by grabbing a bite (or two) while up there. It always makes for a fun road trip.

[Rita]

Thanks for the recipe. Its been 20 years and I still remember Chicken Alice fondly. Do you know if Parks Brand Kim Chee sauce is still available? I could not find it online. It seems that Parks Brand is now part of Halms Enterprises, but I don't see kim chee sauce in their line-up.
http://www.halmsenterprises.com

[Kirk]

Hi Rita - I just bought some from Safeway on my last trip back home. I've seen it on occasion at Marukai in Gardena and Costa Mesa. So I know it is still being produced.