RECIPE: Marc Matsumoto's Shichimi Chicken

This easy chicken can be marinated ahead of time, allowing you to pan-fry and serve it in a matter of minutes. Using mayonnaise in a marinade might sound odd at first, but it works well without being cloying. After being pan-fried, the mayonnaise loses its creaminess, reverting to oil and egg proteins, which helps to keep the chicken moist while giving the shichimi togarashi a surface to adhere to. 

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 packed tbsp kokuto (Okinawa black sugar) powder 
• ½ tsp shichimi togarashi, plus more for garnish
• 500g boneless skin-on chicken thighs (cut into bite-size pieces)
• 1 scallion chopped for garnish

Instructions

1. Whisk the mayonnaise, soy sauce, kokuto, and shichimi togarashi together in a bowl until combined. 
2. Add the chicken and stir to coat evenly. Let this marinate for at least an hour or up to 24 hours. 
3. When you're ready to cook the chicken, arrange the pieces skin-side down on a frying pan. Put the pan over medium-low heat and gently fry the skin side until it has rendered out most of its fat and is nice and brown. 
4. Flip the chicken over and brown the second side. Check a large piece of chicken for doneness by cutting it in half or using an instant-read thermometer.
5. When the chicken is cooked, plate it up and sprinkle on more shichimi togarashi to taste and garnish with scallions.

Recipe courtesy of our friend Marc Matsumoto of No Recipes