Discover Crispy Bliss: Frankfurt’s ChiKing City Unveils Authentic Korean Fried Chicken Delights!

Have you ever heard of Korean fried chicken? Today we’re going to introduce you to our favourite Korean fried chicken restaurant in Frankfurt – ChiKing City, located between the main train station and Willy-Brandt-Platz. But first, let me tell you what Korean fried chicken is and how it differs from American fast food.

Korean fried chicken is a popular version of fried chicken that originated in Korea. It differs from traditional American fried chicken for a number of reasons:

1. The meat is typically double-fried. This gives the chicken an exceptionally crispy coating, while keeping the meat inside tender and juicy.
2. The fried chicken is often dipped or drizzled with a variety of sauces, ranging from mild to very spicy. These sauces typically contain ingredients such as soy sauce, garlic, ginger and honey. Popular choices include spicy sauces or condiments such as gochujang, a sweet and spicy fermented chilli paste, or gochugaru, ground chilli peppers.
3. In addition to sauces, it is common to use a variety of toppings such as roasted sesame seeds, spring onions, chopped garlic and so on.
4. the fried chicken is often served with side dishes such as pickled vegetables, rice or kimchi (the Korean national dish of fermented vegetables), adding extra flavour and texture to the meal.

The menu at ChiKing City offers all the variety that makes Korean fried chicken so special. You can choose from a range of sauces and side dishes. The fried chicken can be ordered with or without bones. Alternatively, you can opt for chicken wings available in the same delicious flavor options as the traditional Korean fried chicken.

At the ChiKing restaurant you can choose between different portion sizes: M for a half portion or L for a large portion of ‘regular’ fried chicken and 10 or 20 pieces of chicken wings. In our opinion, the half portion is perfectly adequate for one person. If you’re eating with a partner or in a group, it’s a good idea to order different dishes so you don’t need large portions either. The house combinations are a good option: Combo A, half a portion without sauce and half a portion with a sauce of your choice, or Combo B, two half portions with a sauce of your choice. But enough about portions, let’s get to what really matters: the flavor.

Our recommendation: If you don’t mind chewing on bones, bone-in is the way to go. They give the meat a fuller flavour as the marrow is released during cooking. This makes the meat juicier and more tender, adding an extra dimension of flavour that complements the crispy coating.

So far, we’ve tried the following versions:

The basic option is the Golden Fried Chicken with no extra sauce. It offers an unadulterated taste that showcases the juiciness of the meat and the crispy crust to perfection – the classic. We almost always order this because we always need something down to earth alongside the intense and expressive flavours.

For those who like it spicy, the Yangnum or Yangnyeom chicken is perfect. It features a sweet and spicy sauce made from ingredients such as gochujang (Korean chilli paste), soy sauce, garlic, ginger and honey or sugar. After frying, it’s brushed over the fried chicken pieces, giving them an aromatic, slightly sticky coating. They’re then sprinkled with peanuts for extra crunch and an earthy flavour. You can choose between mild, medium and very hot. The very spicy version is recommended for lovers of spicy food, while the medium spicy version offers an authentic Korean dining experience for the less experienced.

Garlic Soy Chicken, as the name suggests, has a marinade of soy sauce and garlic. We’re big garlic fans, so this is a must for us.

If you like your main course generously sprinkled with cheese, the Snow Cheese Chicken is worth a try. Unfortunately, the cheese dries out the meat a little and makes it less succulent. It doesn’t compare with other delicious cheese-covered chicken dishes such as Pollo alla Parmigiana or stuffed Cordon Bleu. We probably wouldn’t order it again. But try it for yourself.

Last but not least, my personal favourite at the ChiKing restaurant is the Green Onion Soy Chicken – with spring onions and soy sauce. The salty umami of the soy sauce and the fresh, light sweetness of the spring onions complement the crispy, juicy chicken perfectly.

Of course, ChiKing City also offers other flavours and dishes (e.g. chicken gizzards). However, in our experience, a combination of fried chicken is enough to leave you full and satisfied after this hearty feast. If that’s not enough, or if you want to try something else, you can choose from a variety of side dishes. For example, there are French fries (also with sweet potatoes), mozzarella sticks, onion rings, radish, cabbage salad and tteok-bokki. The most interesting of these are undoubtedly the tteok-bokki. This is a popular Korean street food made from rice cakes cooked with other ingredients such as vegetables, fish, eggs or seafood in a spicy gochujang sauce (Korean chilli paste).

Here’s another tip: Korean cuisine often experiments with sweet and spicy flavours. For example, radish or cabbage salad is pickled in a sweet sauce, which may seem a bit unusual to some people.