Taiwan boasts a thriving food culture. Their night markets alone are teeming with diverse, flavourful curbside eats for the wandering foodie. During my first time in Taipei, enjoying street food was on of the top of my to-do lists. And they surely did not disappoint!
From their pepper buns, scallion pancakes and rice sausages to their rice-stuffed chicken wings, glass dumplings, and stinky tofu, it’s not hard to see why many consider Taiwan to be the Food Capital of Asia.
One of the dishes I was most excited to try was Taiwanese fried chicken, or salt and pepper chicken. This deep-fried, seasoned to perfection dish of chicken cubes, similar to the more popular popcorn chicken, is best enjoyed with a cold drink. In my opinion it goes perfectly with boba milk tea, as does most fried food, really!
Have we got you craving? Here’s how to make Taiwanese salt and pepper chicken right in your very own kitchen.
How to Make Taiwanese Salt and Pepper Chicken
Have you always wondered how to make Taiwanese salt and pepper chicken? It’s not as difficult as you thought it would be! | image: shutterstock
Makes 2 to 4 servings
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch or 1 ½ inch cubes
- 1 tbsp rice wine
- 1/2 cup of canola oil
- 1 stalk spring onions
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 garlic cloves, grated
- 10 grams ginger, grated
- 4 tbsp of light soy sauce
- 1/2 cup of flour
- cornstarch
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 egg, beaten
- a handful of basil leaves
- salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
- In a large bowl, marinate chicken in soy sauce, garlic, ginger, egg, and salt. Set aside for 30 minutes.
- In a separate bowl, sift cornstarch, add flour, pepper, salt and coat chicken cubes evenly.
- Drop chicken gently into a pan with about two inches of oil.
- Deep fry until golden brown.
- Then, remove chicken from pan and strain. Set aside
- Fry basil leaves to a crisp over high heat, for a minute or so, and sprinkle it on top of your chicken.
Serve and enjoy!
Tips:
- To further enjoy this experience, you can dip chicken in chilli garlic sauce or cheese.
- You can even sprinkle five-spice or seaweed powder for added flavour!
Nonilo is an upcoming Asian food & home content and community platform that aims to jumpstart the creative spark within every Asian woman. Follow them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/nonilodotcom/.