Japanese fried chicken

Cut two pounds of boneless skinless chicken thighs into four pieces each, about one and a half inches across, and put them in a medium bowl.

Grate in 10 g of unpeeled ginger and 10 g of garlic on a microplane.

Add 20 g soy sauce, 5 g sesame oil, 20 g mirin, 20 g sake, 8 g salt, 30 g cornstarch and 3 g MSG and coat the chicken.

Marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Spicy mayonnaise: stir 200 g Kewpie mayonnaise with 10 g seasoned rice vinegar, 5 g togarashi and about 10 g chili oil until combined.

Fill a heavy bottom pot about halfway with canola oil, about two quarts, and heat it to 325F.

Shake about 500 g of potato starch into a medium bowl, add about 30 sprays of water, and toss by hand, crumbling any large clods of hydrated starch.

Toss half the marinated chicken in the moistened starch, then finish each piece by crumbling starch onto both sides, pressing the breading into the meat and shaking off the excess.

Lower the chicken into the 325F oil with a spider. After 20 to 30 seconds nudge the pieces apart; do not agitate sooner or the unset starch comes off.

Fry two and a half minutes to very light browning, then drain on a wire rack for about one minute so the starch sets and absorbs the resting juices.

Fry a second time for 90 seconds to a mid tier of browning, rest again one minute.

Fry a third time for 90 more seconds, until reddish brown.

Hold the drained chicken on a sheet tray in a 200F oven while the second half is dredged and fried, about six to eight minutes.

Serve on very finely shredded cabbage with the spicy mayonnaise and a lemon.