Also known as 唐揚げ, から揚げ, からあげ, Japanese Fried Chicken, Tori no Karaage.
Bite-sized pieces of chicken thigh marinated in soy, ginger and garlic, dusted in potato starch and deep-fried. Sold at teishoku chains, konbini hot counters, bento shops and every festival stall.
468kcal / 5 pieces
One piece of chicken karaage is about 94 calories, so a 5 piece plate is 468 calories. Those are Matsunoya's published numbers for their karaage, each piece about 35g. A karaage teishoku with rice and miso soup runs 900 to 1,000 calories.
Nutrition facts
Per 5 pieces (175g)
Amount
Per 100g
Calories
468 kcal
267 kcal
Protein
28 g
16 g
Carbs
27 g
15 g
Fat
28 g
16 g
Where the calories come from
Chicken thigh with skin, raw150g
300 kcal
Potato starch and flour coating20g
70 kcal
Frying oil absorbed11g
98 kcal
The real talk
Karaage looks like a light snack because each piece is small, but 94 calories per piece is more than a slice of pizza per bite. Thigh meat with skin is about 200 calories per 100g before it touches the fryer. The starch coating soaks up oil, and a 35g piece ends up with about 6g of fat, which is where 55 of its 94 calories sit. Five pieces is 28g of fat, the same as a McDonald's Big Mac.
The good news is the protein. A 5 piece plate has 28g of protein, more than most rice dishes in Japan. That is why a karaage bento at 800 calories keeps you full for hours while a 450 calorie onigiri and salad does not. The trick is the rice. Bento shops pack 250 to 300g of rice under the chicken, which is 390 to 470 calories on its own before the 468 of chicken.
Konbini karaage is a smaller version of the same thing. Lawson's Karaage-kun is 5 nugget-sized pieces at around 220 calories for the pack, less than half a restaurant plate because each piece is about 15g of breast meat instead of 35g of thigh. If you want the taste for a 250 yen snack and 220 calories, that is a reasonable trade. A full teishoku is 4 times that.
How the portions compare
281 kcal
3 pieces
468 kcal
5 pieces
750 kcal
8 pieces
Chicken Karaage variants, ranked by calories
Variant
Calories
Notes
Lawson Karaage-kun, 5 pieces
220 kcal
Small breast-meat nuggets
Breast meat karaage, 5 pieces
350 kcal
Leaner cut
Standard thigh karaage, 5 pieces
468 kcal
Matsunoya figure
Karaage with mayo, 5 pieces
560 kcal
One squeeze of mayo adds about 90
Karaage teishoku
950 kcal
5 pieces, rice, miso soup, cabbage
How to eat it lighter
Order 3 pieces instead of 5. Matsunoya lists 3 pieces at 281 calories, which is a proper protein serving.
Ask for less rice or leave a third of it. Rice is 250 to 300 calories of a karaage teishoku that nobody notices.
Squeeze the lemon and skip the mayo. Karaage mayo is 80 to 100 calories per squeeze.
Breast meat karaage (mune karaage) is about 70 calories per piece instead of 94. Some chains offer it.
At home, air-fry or shallow-fry with a tablespoon of oil. The starch still crisps and each piece drops to about 65 calories.
Common questions
How many calories in one piece of karaage?
About 94 calories for a standard 35g restaurant piece of thigh karaage. Konbini nugget-sized pieces are about 45 each.
Is karaage healthier than KFC?
Per 100g they are close. Karaage is about 270 calories per 100g, KFC original recipe about 250. Karaage usually has no bone, so you eat more meat per piece and the plate adds up faster.
How many calories in a karaage bento?
Typically 800 to 900 calories. That is 5 pieces of karaage at 468 plus 280g of rice at 440, with a little pickle and pasta salad on the side.
Can I eat karaage while cutting weight?
Yes, in a 3 piece portion with rice kept to 150g. That meal is about 520 calories with 25g of protein, which is a normal lunch.
Calorie and macro figures are estimates for a typical restaurant, ramen shop or konbini serving. Actual numbers vary by stall, recipe and portion size. Use them as a guide, not gospel.
Calorie figure based on Matsunoya published nutrition PDF (単品本格唐揚げ 1個 94 kcal, 5個 468 kcal), Sep 2026. Macros estimated from the ingredients.