Kimchified Chicken & Waffles

 I say why not. I've added Kimchi just about to everything now so why not Waffles? Waffles make a great canvas to showcase my Kimchi. 

For this Waffle extravaganza, I used my Bok-Choy-Kimchi. The Kimchi has pears in the recipe, so I thought this would pair well with the waffles. Sweet and Savory to the tenth level!!! 

Some have asked me how do I come up with these crazy recipes? I am always thinking of food that's how. This one happened by chance. My 13-year-old daughter was trying to get my attention all the while I was thinking of making some more Kimchi. This stuff is so good we through it fast, and I tend to give it away as gifts. Anyhow, she wanted to make waffles, and BOOM Kimchified Chicken & Waffles was born.

Another crazy thing I do is called Dream-Storming. You've all heard of Brain-Storming?  Well, I do it while I am sleeping too. This is intentional also. Some count sheep, some use other distractions to fall asleep, but I like to focus on food. I believe when you're in a state of relaxation you become inspired, creative and problem-solving becomes easy. I produce some of my favorite recipes while sleeping. This is just not for food either. I use this technique for just about everything. 

This dish would not be complete without some chicken. For this dish, I wanted to keep things simple. I had some Organic Chicken Breasts that was already SV (I always have this on hand), so this made this dish easy to do. Note: I am not against using non-organic poultry, but I have found that it has the best taste and texture especially when cooked Sous-Vide. For the chicken, I always Dry-Brine with salt and spices. I used a little salt, garlic & onion powder and pepper. Dry-Brine for at least 6 hours and no more than 24 hours. Sous-Vide at 145 f for 3 hours. These are my go-to Time and Temps for Breasts. Shock and refrigerate until ready to use. This chicken will work well with any recipe!!!! 

I decided I wanted a nice crust for this Chicken & Waffle dish, so I went with Panko Bread Crumbs. For the setup, I used 3/4 Cup of AP flour and 1/4 C of Corn-Starch. Cornstarch makes a great crust. No salt was added to the starch because the Chicken was already Dry-Brined. To this mixture, I added 2 Tsp. of Coarse Korean Red Pepper Flakes (Gochugaru). I also used Buttermilk which is a favorite of mine. To the Buttermilk, I added a couple of Tsp. Korean Red Pepper Flakes and just a touch of Gochugaru Red Pepper Paste. 


This recipe is incredible because the Chicken is already cooked. Take cold chicken and dip in flour mixture, then into buttermilk than into panko and sit on the rack. Place in refrigerator for a minimum of 45 minutes. Refrigerating the chicken accomplishes a few things. It dries the surface which ensures even frying, less splatter, and excellent browning. Fry in hot oil!!!! Make sure oil comes up halfway up the breasts. Note: since the chicken is already cooked we just have to brown the outside which means we can have the oil at a higher temperature. This only takes about 2 minutes. 

Fun Tidbit- Why does the oil splatter? It doesn't water does! The moment water reaches the oil and in this case a moist breast it will turn instantly into steam, expand and splatter hence the need to dry the breasts first. 

Set on a rack and let cool slightly before slicing. Timing is an essential part of cooking so make sure you cook the waffles in concert with your chicken. In a nutshell, when I placed the last chicken breast on the rack to cool, I started making the waffles. Once the waffle was cooked, I sliced up the breast and put on top. 

This is my Kimchified Syrup!!!! Makes about 2 plus cups. Add to a large Bowl 450 grams of Maple Syrup, 50 grams Mayo and 50 grams of Gochugara Red Pepper Paste. Place in a fancy syrup bottle if you want to.  

Let's make the Waffle Batter- 

• 3/4 c AP Flour
• 1/4 c Cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/4 tsp Baking soda
• 1 tsp each of White & Black sesame seeds
• 2 tsp of Korean Red peppers flakes (or to taste)
• 1 tsp Gochugaru Red Pepper Paste (or to liking)
• 6 Tbl Veggible oil
• 1 large egg (separated White and Yolk)
• 1 Tbl Sugar
• 3/4 c of Butter Milk
• 1/4 cup of whole milk 

Directions- Place all the dry ingredients in one bowl and whisk to combine. Add the Oil, egg yolk, buttermilk, and whole milk and whisk to combine. In a separate bowl whip egg white until soft-med peaks develop then add sugar and whip again for a minute or two. Combine the dry ingredients with the wet ones. DO NOT ADD EGG WHITES AND SUGAR YET. After the dry and wet ingredients have been fully incorporated fold in egg white mixture. 

I used a Belgium Waffle maker because it makes deep-pocketed waffles that are bigger and thicker than the average waffle maker.  Anyhow spray down the waffle maker with some nonstick cooking spray. Add your batter and add some Kimchi!!!!!! 



Sweet & Savory meet spicy!!!! This dish was the Bomb!!! My wife and 13 yr old daughter loved the dish. My little girl liking the dish was enough to tell me this recipe was a winner.