Taiwanese Night Market Fried Chicken
These spicy Sichuan style fried chicken breasts are famous in the night markets in Taipei and Taiwan. This Taiwanese Night Market Chicken is perfectly crispy and seasoned and one of our favorite street foods in the world.
Equipment
- Skillet or deep fryer
Ingredients
- 2 Large Chicken Breasts
- 2 Eggs
- 1 Cup Potato Starch
- ½ Cup All Purpose Flour or Rice Flour
- Avocado, Canola, or Vegetable Oil for frying
- Chili Oil
Pepper Seasoning
- 1 Tablespoon Sea Salt
- 2 teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1.5 teaspoon Sichuan Peppercorns
- 1.5 teaspoon Black Peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon White Pepper
Marinade
- 2 Tablespoon Finely Diced Ginger
- 1 Large Garlic Clove minced
- 2 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Mirin
- ½ teaspoon Potato Starch
- 1 Tablespoon Pepper Seasoning
- ½ teaspoon Chinese 5 Spice
Instructions
Seasoning Mix
- Prepare the pepper seasoning by grinding the peppercorns into a fine powder using a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder. Then add the remaining spice ingredients and mix well. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the mix for the marinade.
Prepare the chicken
- Butterfly the chicken breast by turning them over and finding the natural separation line of the breast, then using a knife trim back the chicken in each direction, making sure you do not cut all of the way through the chicken breast. This is best accomplished by putting your knife at a 45 degree angle and then making a shallow cut from the base to the top of the chicken. Repeat the process on the other side of the midline. If done correctly, the chicken should open up like a tri-leaf pamphlet.
- If you have one, use a Jaccard on the chicken breast to tenderize it. It is a great tool for providing juicy tender chicken, especially when frying. If you do not have one, it is not a big a deal with the recipe because the chicken is thin enough, that the texture should be fine either way.
- Place a piece of parchment paper over the chicken and pound with a meat mallet until the chicken is very thin, but again take care not to tear any holes in the chicken.
Marinade
- In a 1 gallon bag combine all of the marinade ingredients.
- Place the chicken breasts in the marinade and let sit in the fridge for 30 minutes to 2 hours. The chicken is pretty thin and it takes up the marinade quickly, so no need to go any longer than 2 hours.
- When you are ready to cook, remove the chicken from the marinade and pat it dry with paper towels to remove as much moisture as possible.
Cook the chicken
- Prepare a wok or pan with your frying oil and if you would like to kick it up a notch, some chili fire oil. Start heating up the oil at a medium temperature.
- Beat the eggs with 2 Tablespoons of water.Prepare 1 large plate with the flour mixture (potato starch and flour) and another plate with the egg.
- Dredge the chicken through the flour mixture, then shake of any excess. Then dip the chicken in the egg, and then followed by the flour mixture again. Make certain all of the nooks and crannies of the breast are covered. Shake off the excess gently, and then place the chicken in the hot oil.
- Cook the chicken for about 2-2.5 minutes per side, and until the internal temp of the chicken is at least 165 degrees. Note the potato starch is not going to brown as deeply as regular flour, so do not expect it to look like traditional fried chicken at this point.
- Remove the chicken to a paper towel lined plate and season liberally with the pepper seasoning. Allow to sit for a couple minutes before digging in.
Nutrition
Calories: 789kcalCarbohydrates: 106gProtein: 66gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 308mgSodium: 4964mgPotassium: 1992mgFiber: 9gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 954IUVitamin C: 7mgCalcium: 161mgIron: 6mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!