HOW TO MAKE TAIWANESE POPCORN CHICKEN RECIPES

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.

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.