Egashira 2:50 Fries Chicken in Low-Splatter Oil: Making "Ega-Chiki" with Ryuji

According to Ryuji's explanation, Double Half is an oil that splatters less and requires less oil to use. There is a backstory to asking Egashira to do a sponsorship with this oil. Previously, in a collaboration on Ega-chan-neru, when Ryuji taught three snacks that pair well with Egabeer, Ryuji had Egashira fry something in Double Half. At that time, Egashira reacted to the oil not splattering with "Don't steal my role." Ryuji calls this oil "the oil that kills Ega-chan."

However, after that episode featuring Egashira, Double Half reportedly "sold like crazy." The manufacturer asked, "Could you bring Egashira along?", which led to this project. In the previous video, Egashira cooked in regular clothes, but this time the idea is to have Egashira strip and make a dish that is safe to fry even while naked. Egashira shot back, "It doesn't splatter, so I won't get any reactions, right?" and "Isn't that a comedian killer?", while Ryuji deflected with "You'll manage to get some."

During filming, Egashira complained about the strong pressure from the three people watching intently from behind. Ryuji answered, "They're the client," and Egashira rephrased it as "the people who give us money."

Ryuji had been checking Egashira's videos and knew that Egashira is tough on chicken. Egashira has even harshly criticized convenience store karaage products. Egashira is the type who, even when eating chicken dishes, ends up thinking they are "not that tasty." On the other hand, Egashira rated the karaage Ryuji made at Egafes as "insanely good," so preferences apparently vary depending on the karaage.

Egashira said they love the aroma of garlic. In the past there was a garlic-flavored seasoning for sprinkling on fried food, and Egashira liked its smell and taste. Ryuji had anticipated this preference, and when Ryuji took out the garlic powder, Egashira reacted with "Well, that's a sure win, isn't it?" After eating, Ryuji revealed having studied Egashira's review videos, and having aimed for a crispy finish on the assumption that Egashira wouldn't like anything greasy and soggy with oil.

For the toast, they used a different beer that was bought in a hurry, because the two had drunk too much Egabeer in their previous collaboration and only two glasses' worth remained. The Egabeer was opened for the tasting after the dish was finished.

The aim this time is convenience-store-style chicken that can be held in the hand and eaten. First, Egashira pounds chicken thighs laid on plastic wrap with a whiskey bottle to flatten them out thin. At first Egashira was too forceful and Ryuji intervened. Egashira continued pounding, focusing on the center, but got rough again toward the end, and Ryuji stopped it, saying "That was cutting it close" and "If you go any further it'll turn into something like a hamburger steak."

Next, the thin part of the thigh, which is a different cut, is separated off, and the larger piece is also cut in half. Ryuji instructed Egashira to hold the meat down and move the blade. Egashira cut better than in their previous appearance together, and Ryuji praised it: "You've improved." When Egashira was impressed by how well the knife cut, Ryuji said it was a knife Ryuji had produced, and Egashira quipped, "Another plug."

Ryuji repeatedly explained the concept of this project. The idea is that seeing Egashira, who doesn't normally cook, working hard might give viewers who aren't good at cooking hope that "I can do it too." This was Egashira's fourth dish ever.

Ryuji has Egashira add the marinade ingredients one by one, explaining the reason for each.

The garlic and ginger are grated with a grater. According to Ryuji, the ginger serves to remove the gamey smell of the chicken, and adding garlic and ginger makes the aroma stronger. The base of the seasoning is soy sauce, to which both fresh garlic and garlic powder are added. Ryuji said that using the two together makes the aroma really good.

Next comes Ajinomoto. Ryuji likes dishes made without Ajinomoto too, but judged that adding it this time would deepen the flavor. Egashira also likes Ajinomoto, because "I was raised on Ajinomoto." Egashira's recommended way to use it is to sprinkle only Ajinomoto and soy sauce over julienned cucumber; that alone makes a snack to go with drinks, and "you don't need anything extra." When Ryuji explained that J-Oil Mills is part of the Ajinomoto group, Egashira took back the earlier remark about the client being scary, rephrasing it as "they're super nice people," and apologized.

Sugar: half a teaspoon. According to Ryuji, adding a little brings out richness, playing a role similar to adding mirin to karaage. Egashira recalled that Egashira's mother used to put mirin in karaage. White pepper: four shakes, though ordinary finely ground pepper is fine too. Adding a teaspoon of cake flour makes the coating a little thicker.

Here, a teaspoon of Double Half is mixed into the marinade. According to Ryuji's explanation, having oil in the coating makes it crisp. Finally, a three-finger pinch of salt is added as a secret ingredient, and everything is gently massaged in. Ryuji explained that letting it marinate for about 15 minutes lets the soy sauce and spices soak into the meat.

Fine, powdery cake flour is sprinkled evenly over the marinated meat. It is applied thoroughly until the outside turns white, and the other side is dusted the same way. Ryuji explained that this method gives chicken with a thin coating that isn't greasy, adding, "I really only discovered this recently." The basic rule for karaage is to coat both sides with flour, and it tastes better when the whole thing is coated.

Since a double batch had been marinated, including portions for the Brief Squad to taste, several pieces were floured.

The frying is done in a frying pan, which Ryuji explained is easier. Double Half is poured in to about 1–2 cm from the bottom of the pan. According to Ryuji, this oil fries things crisply even in small amounts, so surprisingly little is enough. The heat is medium; since there were two pieces this time a large frying pan was used, but for one piece a smaller pan is fine, Ryuji said.

When Egashira gently placed the chicken in, things were lively at first: "Looking good." But right afterward, Egashira cried out "Ow, hot, hot!" and protested, "You said it doesn't splatter!" Ryuji momentarily started to say "Please cut that," but then corrected the explanation: "It's the low-splatter kind, you see," and "Normally it would splatter way more, pop, pop." After that, the second and third pieces went in, and Ryuji pointed out that it may have splattered slightly at first, but now it wasn't splattering at all. Ryuji summed up that the product's selling point is that it fries crisply with a small amount of oil, where ordinary karaage would call for more.

When Egashira said, "You're good at plugging sponsors," Ryuji revealed that about a third of the videos Ryuji posts daily each month are sponsored videos. When Ryuji said "I like sponsorships," Egashira teased, "You're the most shameless guy in the YouTube world." Ryuji rephrased it as "I just like working," and retorted that last time Ryuji had also properly promoted Egabeer.

When flipped over, the chicken had a golden-brown color. Ryuji explained that the color changes as the thin coating fries up crisp. At one point Ryuji flattered Egashira, saying, "If you can make fried food, you'll be popular with the ladies." When asked about hobbies, Egashira started to talk about sex shops, and Ryuji cut in, "We won't get any more sponsorships." The chicken was flipped once more to check the color, and Ryuji said that listening to the sound is important. After frying for another 1–2 minutes it was done and moved onto paper towels.

To finish, the fried chicken is wrapped in parchment paper. Ryuji demonstrated first. The chicken is placed on a suitably sized piece of paper so that half of it sticks out, then folded and rolled up. This makes it look like convenience store chicken, makes it easier to eat, and kids love it, Ryuji said. Hedging on product names with "something like Karaage-kun" and "I don't know if I'm allowed to say Famichiki," Ryuji explained that it's designed to evoke convenience store chicken. Egashira wrapped them the same way, and they made enough for everyone. Egashira said, "This is a Christmas party."

They toasted with the remaining Egabeer and moved on to the tasting. Egashira first praised the Egabeer as fruity with a nice aroma, and mentioned that it uses six varieties of hops.

After eating the chicken, Egashira said "It goes well," and commented that since it didn't use much oil, it didn't have that greasy "juchaju" feeling. Ryuji added that it was soy-sauce-based with a lot of garlic, and Egashira replied, "The garlic really comes through, so I love it." Members of the Brief Squad tasted it next. They praised how crisply it was fried and how the garlic kicks in afterward, and remarked that the combination of grated garlic and powder made it taste great with beer. Some also said it had the feel of convenience store chicken.

When Ryuji asked, "Is it okay if I go ahead and call it Ega-Chiki?", Egashira answered that it was fine.

Ryuji pointed out that Egashira, who doesn't normally cook, takes it seriously once actually doing it, and is careful about hygiene, washing hands many times, and said this attitude might resonate with people who cook. Egashira shot back, "Don't ruin me" and "That's interfering with my business." In wrapping up the product introduction, Ryuji described Double Half as "fries things really crisply, and mostly doesn't splatter," and Egashira added, "It splattered a little."

In between cooking, they talked about each other's channels. Ryuji's staff often watch Egashira's channel, and Ega-chan-neru's audio can routinely be heard around the office.

Ryuji also brought up the time Egashira introduced the Bus Center curry as delicious in a video. Ryuji happened to have made a recreation of that curry, so Ryuji rushed the edit and released it the next day, and the video did very well. They also touched on the Oricon ranking of favorite YouTubers, in which Egashira came first and Ryuji second, and Ryuji joked that most of the voters were probably the same crowd.

After the tasting, when Egashira asked, "Do you prefer cooking or eating?", Ryuji answered that cooking is preferred, and especially having other people eat the food, because people who eat it say it's delicious and smile.

Ryuji revealed having originally been a shut-in who didn't go to school much. During that period, Ryuji cooked for the family, and everyone smiled. Thinking, "Even a shut-in like me can make everyone smile," Ryuji says cooking was a lifesaver.

Egashira suggested that among the fans there must be people who have been made to smile by Ryuji and want to cook to make someone else smile, too. Ryuji says people often say that when they cooked Ryuji's recipes for a partner, parents or children, the tense atmosphere eased as they gathered around the table. The people Ryuji can personally cook for are limited to friends and family. That is why Ryuji thinks that by teaching everyone how to cook and having them cook in their own homes, smiles might multiply around the world.

Asked whether Ryuji had ever thought of working at a restaurant, Ryuji answered having once worked in a restaurant kitchen. But in the kitchen, you can't see the customers' faces. Ryuji thought a place where you cook at the counter and serve people directly would be sustainable, but such a place would have to be self-run and would require a substantial amount of capital. Feeling unsuited to working as an employee, Ryuji had been thinking of keeping cooking as a hobby. Later, after going viral on social media, Ryuji started calling himself a cooking researcher, which was what Ryuji had originally wanted to be, and work started coming in. Now, Ryuji said, the goal is to do things together with people like Egashira who understand the joy of cooking.

Egashira asked Ryuji, whose channel has about 5.5 million subscribers, whether there were any plans to actually serve food at something like a festival. Ryuji answered that there is interest, but there are constraints, such as how much Ryuji is allowed to cook personally. Even so, Ryuji would like to try doing it in a format where Ryuji cooks a certain amount and serves it. Egashira encouraged the idea, saying that serving food Ryuji made personally, not just recipe books, would definitely win people's hearts.

When Ryuji invited Egashira, asking "If I do it, will you come?", Egashira answered, "As an eater." Ryuji brought up the time Egashira made the Ultimate Fried Rice at an event, but Egashira recalled it being tough. In the end, to Egashira's words that no one has done that kind of project yet so Ryuji should do it, Ryuji replied, "Let's do it," and the video ends with the promise that Egashira will come along on the eating side.