"korean fried chicken" news and stories

Fried chicken. Photo: thebittenword.com, Flickr

• Fried chicken goes international, from Creole to Korean kitchens.
• L.L. Bean heiress Linda L. Bean gets ready to mass market Maine lobsters and end Canadian lobster dependence.
• A look at "Top Chef" hostess Padma Lakshmi's Sunday routine.
• Jewish delis are suffering from waning popularity, and those that are left struggle to keep the meaty magic alive.
• The end of Gourmet magazine after almost 70 years, and those mourning its demise.
• The dangers of E. Coli and pre-ground beef, and the story of Stephanie Smith.
• When cooking becomes boring, A Good Appetite suggests playing "cupboard roulette."
• The Minimalist makes a crustless, Pan-Baked Lemon-Almond Tart.
• Joining old Italian pros as they chop, stew and jar plum tomatoes in prime autumn tradition.
• Cooking with Dexter finally learns the artificial flavor of the fast food beneath the golden arches.
• Rogacki is "a temple devoted" to Berlin deli fare, in West Berlin, Germany.
• Restaurant: After 10 years, Brooklyn's Saul has only gotten better, Queens' Engeline is a rare slice of Filipino fare and the Lower East Side's Ten Bells mixes wine and charcuterie.
• Food Stuff finds R.W. Apple Jr.'s new book, SoHo crepes and Saratoga chips.
• New York's openings and closings and food calendar.

A while back I wrote about snacking on Korean "Fried Chicken," a junk food that has as much to do with fried chicken as Pocky does with Belgian chocolate. After reading about yang-nyum tong dak, or actual Korean fried chicken, I set out to try some. I'd heard of this legendary beer snack and had been meaning to sample some for years, but most places were a little too out of the way. That is until Unidentified Flying Chickens landed practically in my backyard. This hip ultramodern space knows its bird. I ordered up six hot and six soy-garlic wings and was amazed by the delicate crunchy skin.

By now you're wondering what all this has to do with a Midnight Snack. Good question. It's simple. About 12 hours after lunch, I put UFC's chicken to the ultimate test: eating it cold. Not only was it still crunchy, I think the sauce might have had even more of a chance to flavorize those alien chicken wings.
(Unidentified Flying Chickens, 71-22 Roosevelt Ave., Jackson Heights, N.Y., (718) 205-6662)