Korean Fried Chicken in GTA

[Stepmiller]

I was reading this article in the New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/07/dining/07fried.html?ex=1328504400&en=7a499fafbf603ccc&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss), which talks about how different Korean fried chicken is from your usual North Amercian KFC..


According to Mr. Jin and others, that’s why the Korean-style chicken places here serve mostly wings (true connoisseurs can specify either the upper “arm” or the “wing”) and small drumsticks. The chicken is typically seasoned only after it is fried, with either a sweetish garlic-soy glaze or a hotter red-pepper sauce that brings the dish into Buffalo wing territory.

For crunch, American-style fried chicken relies on a thick, well-seasoned crust, often made even thicker by soaking the chicken pieces beforehand in buttermilk. When that crust is nubbly and evenly browned, and the chicken meat is cooked through, the chicken is sublime. But too often, the flesh is still raw when the crust is cooked, or the skin never cooks all the way through, leaving a flabby layer of skin between the meat and the crust.

Korean-style fried chicken is radically different, reflecting an Asian frying technique that renders out the fat in the skin, transforming it into a thin, crackly and almost transparent crust. (Chinese cooks call this “paper fried chicken.”) The chicken is unseasoned, barely dredged in very fine flour and then dipped into a thin batter before going into the fryer. The oil temperature is a relatively low 350 degrees, and the chicken is cooked in two separate stages.



So now I want some, where in the GTA can this be found?

[TheDarkRage]

Ajuker's Chicken
Downtown Koreantown

On Bloor St., a block east of Christie station.
It's right beside Annex Sub (local arcade).

Man, it was so good when I went there. Altho the basement is a real storage area, and I kept on seeing these boxes that looked like they were for instant noodles. Maybe it was the sauce they used.

Afterwards, I joked how it's the MSG/instant noodle flavouring that's making it taste so good, haha.

Hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did!

[Cruel_Angel]

Yeah, i've been looking for a place too, I definetly wana try some~

[501]

in korean town.

[duckdown]

I hate these places, they serve those practically un-edible parts of the chicken wing (not the drumstick, and not the wing, but the long triangular part on the very end)

i dont enjoy that at all..

[Oishi Girl]

If you're in the northern part of the GTA, there is a Korean chicken place (forget the name) in the Red Lobster plaza, on Yonge, north of Steeles. The place is beside the Shanghainese restaurant. Have not yet tried it...:cheesygri

[felix]

If you're in the northern part of the GTA, there is a Korean chicken place (forget the name) in the Red Lobster plaza, on Yonge, north of Steeles. The place is beside the Shanghainese restaurant. Have not yet tried it...:cheesygri
Thanks, will try out that place. Never knew about korean fried chicken before but it sounds great. We go to the Shanghai restaurant you mentioned frequently (next to what used to be Sushi Boy right?).


I hate these places, they serve those practically un-edible parts of the chicken wing (not the drumstick, and not the wing, but the long triangular part on the very end)

i dont enjoy that at all..
I love wing tips! So they serve all 3 parts correct?

[Oishi Girl]

"Shanghai restaurant you mentioned frequently (next to what used to be Sushi Boy right?). "

Yep, that's the place! Lemme know how the chicken is...looking forward to your review!:cheesygri

[gordholio]

Give me southern fried chicken any day.

[duckdown]

Thanks, will try out that place. Never knew about korean fried chicken before but it sounds great. We go to the Shanghai restaurant you mentioned frequently (next to what used to be Sushi Boy right?).



I love wing tips! So they serve all 3 parts correct?

ewww man

ya, the wing tips i guess

it's like 40% cartlidge 60% bone.... it's just more junk to add weight to the lb of already-small chicken wings

[Stepmiller]

specifically Scarborough

[Irb]

ewww man

ya, the wing tips i guess

it's like 40% cartlidge 60% bone.... it's just more junk to add weight to the lb of already-small chicken wingsReal chicken wings lovers know that the point of eating chicken wings is for the tendons and cartilage. If you wanted meat you eat other parts of the chicken.

[CanadaBoy]

I see a lot of KFC's in the GTA

[evoviii]

I see a lot of KFC's in the GTA

Really... very interesting to know



Wonder how much korean fried chicken costs.

[Ma_Jie]

I've been to Ajuker before; I loved it. It's a bit messy to eat though, but it's delicious.

Cheers,

Jie

[duckdown]

I see a lot of KFC's in the GTA

lol nice.

[duckdown]

Real chicken wings lovers know that the point of eating chicken wings is for the tendons and cartilage. If you wanted meat you eat other parts of the chicken.

ah, i must be one of those "fake" chicken wing lovers then

[pasia]

Well I am Korean so I love those... I miss it so much!
Back in Korea, those are one of the more common items for home delivery. I used to order whole chicken fried (used to be $10 including delivery when I was crazy about it, but I think it's more expensive there now :( ) and ate them all myself.. Ajuka is okay (Bloor), but nothing here compares to the sauce you can get in Korea :( I really miss it.

It's kinda similar to hot wings.. you fry the chicken and add sauce to it.

[CoffeeAddict]

The last time I had these kind of wings for take out was in Korea too... more than a decade ago!!!

My mom still makes this stuff at home on occaision
she hasn't made them in a while though... time to call mom! :D

I miss oyster sauce wings too =(

[billdozer]

Real chicken wings lovers know that the point of eating chicken wings is for the tendons and cartilage. If you wanted meat you eat other parts of the chicken.

So I guess whenever you're at a bar or bbq or something with your friends, they eat the meaty part of a chicken wing and throw you all the tips for you to suck on?

[gordholio]

Real chicken wings lovers know that the point of eating chicken wings is for the tendons and cartilage. If you wanted meat you eat other parts of the chicken.

You're kidding aren't you?
Eating cartilage? I guess if the wings have no meat, you've got to eat something?
I eat wings on occasion, but of course there's not much meat compared to legs or breasts, but the drawing card is the hot barbecue wing sauce, not the wing itself.
You can eat tons of wings because there's not a lot of meat on them.

[duckdown]

THANK you for backing me up on this, the 2 or 3 people before me..


Wing tips = waste of weight, and takes away from the (already small) amount of meat within a lb. of wings

When I pay for a lb. of wings I expect NOTHING other than mini-drumsticks & wings....simple as that :)

[billdozer]

REAL chicken wing lovers (or anybody with a sense of taste) will know that the meat on chicken wings is unique/more tender/less stringy than any other part of a chicken.

[fooey]

I haven't tried Bloor's Ajuker chicken place, but they are franchise and they have another place at the same plaza as Reb Lobster and Pizza Hut is located (Yonge and Clark area).

My personal favourite Korean fried wings place is actually located right across the Thornhill Ajuker chicken place. It's another Korean restaurant... forgot the name... something spicy and hot place??? Don't recall. But do try it. They specialize in hot and very spicy chickens. They are literally called "Fire chicken" in Korean. This is different from what Ajuker sells (though you can get the similar style hot chicken wing from this place as well).

A warning however... that fire chicken is... really spicy. I don't like it, because after few bites, I lose my tastebuds. From then on, everything taste spicy. They also provide good veggi munchies.

[royaljelly]

My personal favourite Korean fried wings place is actually located right across the Thornhill Ajuker chicken place. It's another Korean restaurant... forgot the name... something spicy and hot place??? Don't recall. But do try it. They specialize in hot and very spicy chickens. They are literally called "Fire chicken" in Korean. This is different from what Ajuker sells (though you can get the similar style hot chicken wing from this place as well).

A warning however... that fire chicken is... really spicy. I don't like it, because after few bites, I lose my tastebuds. From then on, everything taste spicy. They also provide good veggi munchies.
I don't get it, you say it's your "personal favorite" but then you also say that you "don't like it" when you lose your tastebuds after a few bites? Do they also serve non-spicy wings too?

How do they compare to Ajuker across the street in terms of price?

[szw]

Does Ajuker have large pieces of chicken or do they only sell wings? I want to try the korean fried chicken, as written about in the OP and that new york times article, but from the descriptions Ajuker is more like a wing place.

[pilmania]

it's just too bad that there is no decent korean fried chicken place in toronto. I left korea 11 yrs ago and there are 2 things i (and most of other koreans i know) miss a lot which are ja jang myun and fried chicken.

[royaljelly]

Just tried the place in Thornhill called House of Hot Taste, just off Yonge and north of Steeles. It's across the parking lot of Ajuker take out Korean chicken. Anyways, we tried their 1/2 chicken (including wings) for $8.99, and a few other dishes too (fried rice, soup). The waiter recommended the hot and sweet sauce for the chicken... it was nothing special.

I think I'll stick to my KFC instead, or BBQ my own bird...

[Irb]

ah, i must be one of those "fake" chicken wing lovers thenNo not fake. You just don't know the beauty of eating yet :razz:

[fooey]

I don't get it, you say it's your "personal favorite" but then you also say that you "don't like it" when you lose your tastebuds after a few bites? Do they also serve non-spicy wings too?

How do they compare to Ajuker across the street in terms of price?

I haven't been to Ajuker recently so I don't remember the relative pricing.

What I meant by the earlier comment was that "House of Hot Taste" specializes in fire-chicken and the hot and sweet chicken. The fire-chicken is the one I don't particularly like. It kills tastebud too fast for me to enjoy the chicken. I really enjoy the hot&sweet chicken though.

[el_diablo007]

it's just too bad that there is no decent korean fried chicken place in toronto. I left korea 11 yrs ago and there are 2 things i (and most of other koreans i know) miss a lot which are ja jang myun and fried chicken.

sorry for the derail, but is ja jang myun black bean-like sauce on noodles?

[pilmania]

yup, that's what it is. it will cost you $4 delivered to your door in 15 mins in korea.
sorry for the derail, but is ja jang myun black bean-like sauce on noodles?

[el_diablo007]

I'm actually chinese, but the phonetics are almost the same. You can get this stuff at many of the 'hole-in-the-wall' chinese restaurants in china town, tastes great! :D