[Chicken Nanban]

Chicken nanban is available as a bento box or side dish all over Japan. Many households have their own special flavor of this home-style dish. When making chicken nanban at home, I have never given much thought to whether chicken breast or chicken thigh is used, but upon investigation, I found that in Miyazaki Prefecture, the home of this dish, chicken breast is typically used. I also learned for the first time that there are two types of chicken nanban: the common version with tartar sauce, and the simpler version with only sweet-and-sour sauce.

Poultry farming is thriving in Miyazaki Prefecture, and many chicken dishes, such as char-grilled Miyazaki jidori chicken and chicken nanban, are popular in the region. Chicken nanban is a local dish that originated in Nobeoka City, Miyazaki Prefecture, and was first prepared as a bribe dish at a Western-style restaurant in the city in the 1950s. The chicken is lightly floured, dipped in an egg mixture, deep-fried, and then dipped in sweet vinegar. After the appearance of Western-style restaurants, where the dish was topped with tartar sauce and served with a salad, it became widely popular as a dining-out option in the 1960s.

"Nanban" is often used to refer to something unusual and exotic that came to Japan, or something favored by people from other countries. When fish deep-fried and then marinated in vinegar from Spanish and Portuguese cuisine was introduced to Japan, it came to be called "nanbanzuke." Chicken nanban was named because it is a chicken dish prepared in a similar way, using sweet vinegar.

The chicken nanban I had in Miyazaki City was very tasty and authentic, with both the sweet vinegar and tartar sauce having a distinctive sweet flavor. Additionally, chicken nanban is so popular as a souvenir that supermarkets in Miyazaki Prefecture sell sweet-and-sour sauce for chicken nanban, and some even offer a set of the sauce and tartar sauce, which is enjoyed on a daily basis.

A recommended product for making chicken nanban at home is Rikucho Ogasawara's Fish Pan. The fish pan can cook a whole fish without cutting it, and its oval shape makes it possible to fry two servings of chicken meat at once. In addition to frying, this ironware masterpiece has many other uses, such as stir-frying and cooking rice. Please enjoy it with a variety of dishes.

Rikucho Ogasawara's Fish Pan
https://www.shokunin.com/en/rikucho/fishpan.html
Aji no Ogura Chain
https://ogurachain.com/

References
https://www.maff.go.jp/j/keikaku/syokubunka/k_ryouri/search_menu/menu/chikin_nanban_miyazaki.html
https://ogura-nobeoka.com/y-staffblog/おぐらのタルタルソースづくり編/