Fried chicken takes front and center in gorgeous new recipe book, 'Kung Pao & Beyond'

Who doesn't love fried chicken? The ever-reliable ulam is a staple — and a favorite — all over world, it's safe to say fried chicken has attained comfort food status to most.

It's such a great food item that someone wrote an entire book about it.

Enter "Kung Pao & Beyond." It's a newly published recipe book by Vogue Hong Kong food editor Susan Jung and it features more than 50 recipes of fried chicken from East and Southeast Asia.

There's the basic fried chicken, but also Pandan chicken from Thailand, Chicken Karaage from Japan, Taiwanese Night Market Chicken, Lemon Chicken of Asian-American descent, Kung Pao Chicken, of course, to name a few.

The Philippines figures nicely in the book, with none other than Margarita Fores contributing two recipes, and Jordy Navarra of the beloved Toyo Eatery giving one super simple recipe.

Margarita's first contribution is her Fried Chicken Inasal. According to Susan, the Cibo, Lusso, and Grace Park founder gave her family's recipe for Chicken Inasal. But because "it's a dish of grilled chicken, which doesn't work for the theme of this book, I experimented with making a fried version," Susan shared.

"Something magical happened with the combination of vinegar (in the marinade), annatto oil, and my usual coating mix to make the crunchiest chicken ever," she added.

Margarita also gave a Fried Chicken with Gravy recipe, her take on Jollibee fried chicken, after the author made her wish to have a Jollibee recipe in the cookbook be known. "I'll admit the flavors are not the same, but it's still very good fried chicken, and, like the Jollibee version, is served with a flavorful gravy," Susan wrote.

Meanwhile, Jordy Navarra, of the recently reopened Toyo Eatery, gave a fried chicken recipe inspired by two Filipino favorites: Max's Fried chicken and Savory Classic.

"Kung Pao & Beyond" is wonderfully divided into chapters named after chicken parts. As in: Boneless Breasts, Boneless Legs, Wings, and more. Cute right?

It opens with the basics, introducing the East and Southeast Asian Pantry, moving on to equipment, techniques, and finally chicken parts.

Before becoming the food editor of Vogue hong Kong, Susan was previously the Food and Drinks Editor at the South China Morning Post for over 20 years. Since 2015, Susan has been the Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macau Academy Chair for the World's 50 Best Restaurants and Asia's 50 Best Restaurants.

"Kung Pao & Beyond" (P1,399) is available at Fully Booked and for pre-orders in the National Bookstore website. — LA, GMA Integrated News