Taiwanese Street Style Popcorn Chicken Recipe By Tasty Recipes

POPCORN CHICKEN (TAIWANESE)

Steps:

• Combine chicken pieces, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, five-spice powder, white pepper, salt, and cayenne pepper in a large bowl. Let marinate for 10 minutes.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Whisk egg in a small bowl until smooth. Pour tempura batter mix into a second small bowl. Dip chicken pieces one at a time into the egg, then dredge in tempura batter mix, shaking off any excess. Lower chicken pieces carefully into the hot oil in batches. Fry until chicken is golden brown, 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain. Repeat with remaining chicken.
• Serve chicken sprinkled with basil leaves, green onions, white pepper, and salt.

TAIWANESE POPCORN CHICKEN WITH FRIED BASIL

Steps:

• In a large bowl, season chicken thighs with soy sauce, sugar, five-spice powder, white pepper and 2 teaspoons salt. Set aside to marinate about 1 hour at room temperature, or refrigerate it overnight.
• When ready to cook, fit a medium pot with a cooking thermometer and heat vegetable oil over medium to 350 degrees. Coarsely grind the peppercorns in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle and mix with the remaining 2 teaspoons kosher salt. Set aside.
• Wet your hands and toss marinated chicken with tapioca flour and about 1 tablespoon water until the tapioca flour looks like small beads and clings to the chicken. (Adding a little moisture to your chicken helps the tapioca flour form small beads that will also stick to the chicken and give it a very crunchy crust.)
• Working in batches, add the battered chicken to the hot oil and fry until golden brown and crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. With a slotted spoon or spider, transfer fried chicken to a paper towel-lined plate and season each batch with peppercorn mixture.
• Fry basil leaves until translucent and crisp, 1 to 2 minutes, then scatter over the fried chicken. Serve with leftover peppercorn mixture for sprinkling to taste.

TAIWANESE POPCORN CHICKEN RECIPE BY TASTY

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine chicken thighs, soy sauce, black vinegar, Shaoxing wine, white pepper, five spice, garlic, ginger, and brown sugar until the chicken is well coated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator to marinate overnight.
• When ready to fry, heat the oil in a medium pot over high heat until the temperature reaches 350°F (180°C). Line a baking sheet with paper towels.
• In a small bowl, stir together the paprika, Szechuan peppercorns, and salt.
• When the oil is nearly at temperature, add the tapioca starch to the bowl with the chicken and its marinade and toss to coat, pressing firmly so the tapioca starch sticks to the chicken.
• Add the Thai basil to the hot oil and fry for 1-2 minutes, until crispy. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon and transfer to the paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain.
• Working in batches, add the chicken to the hot oil and fry for 5 minutes, or until golden brown. Transfer to the paper towel-lined baking sheet.
• Sprinkle the peppercorn-salt mixture generously over the fried chicken and basil. Serve with your favorite boba drink and sweet chili sauce.
• Enjoy!