What else would you expect to be on the dessert menu at the Fried Chicken Festival?
It’s hard to overstate how great karaage, Japanese-style fried chicken, is. Not only is it usually seasoned with a mouth-watering mixture of garlic and ginger, it’s cut into boneless, bite-sized morsels so that you can chow down with gusto or easily nibble away while enjoying an ice cold beer.
Yes, karaage is always a welcome addition to any meal, which is why not only do some restauranteurs offer it in limitless portions, but there’s also a traveling food festival, Karaage Festival, specifically dedicated to Japan’s favorite fried bird. The next Karaage Festival is coming up at the start of next month, with the city of Fukuoka, on the southern island of Kyushu, acting as host.
Representatives from over two dozen karaage restaurants from across Japan will be on hand, cooking up their personal take on the dish. But while standard fried chicken is the main draw, there’s room for a bit of variation. For example, some stalls will also be selling chicken wings, and two particularly inventive chefs will even be serving karaage ramen, billed as “The Ultimate Combination,” and karaage made not from the standard chicken, but from ostrich.
But by far the most shocking dining option at Karaage Festival in Fukuoka is shown in the picture below.
▼ And no, the event isn’t serving deep-fried girls.
That swirl of golden brown soft serve, with a hue just like fried chicken breading, is karaage ice cream. Startling as the concept is, it might just be crazy enough to work. Many karaage recipes impart a sweet finish to the chicken, and salty ice cream, such as the sea salt flavor we had biking across Japan’s Inland Sea, is tasty and refreshing.
Still, the text that accompanies the photo translates as “Karaage soft serve ice cream!? You’ve got to take on this challenge!”, which makes us think the fried chicken ice cream may be more novelty than delicacy, like the ramen ice creams we went two rounds with. If you’re up for the challenge, though, Karaage Festival in Fukuoka will be held on April 2 and 3 in Fukuoka Prefecture’s Noogata City.
Event information
Karaage Festival in Fukuoka / からあげフェスティバルin福岡
Address: Fukuoka-ken, Noogata-shi, Yunohara 2-11, Aeon Mall Noogata
福岡県直方市湯野原２丁目１-１ イオンモール直方
April 2-3, 10:30 a.m.0 5 p.m.
Website
Follow Casey on Twitter to keep up-to-date on all the karaage knowledge you need to impress your boss or romantic partner.
Source: IT Media
Images: Karaage Festival (edited by RocketNews24)