taiwan popcorn chicken

Taiwanese popcorn chicken (AKA Yan Su Ji or Salt and pepper chicken) with a super crunchy coating, infused with basil flavor. This is an authentic Taiwanese fried chicken recipe and can be made in an air fryer, oven, or stovetop!

Taiwanese popcorn chicken recipe

chicken thighs

garlic

0.3 oz ginger (grated)

tbsp coconut aminos

five-spice powder

tsp coarse sea salt

½ tsp ground white pepper

½ tsp ground black pepper

tsp untoasted sesame oil (or olive oil)

mirin (optional)

Thai basil leaves (or Italian basil)

tbsp coarse (thick sweet potato starch)

Avocado oil

¼ tsp five spice powder

¼ tsp ground white pepper

garlic powder

¼ tsp Sichuan peppercorn powder (optional)

Dice and season

Dice the chicken to bite sizes, about 1.5-inch chunks.  In a large bowl, combine the chicken with the seasonings from the garlic to mirin. Combine well and marinate for at least 30 minutes or overnight in the fridge.

Clean

Clean the basil leaves and make sure they are patted dry before frying.

Coat

When you are ready to cook, gather the starch in a large bowl, dip the chicken one by one in the starch, and make sure it’s covered on all sides, place it over a large plate. Repeat the process until you finish the batch.

To prepare:

Preheat

Preheat the air fryer to 400F. Spray the basket with avocado oil. Add the chicken and leave some space between each piece. Spray with more oil on top. Air fryer for 6 minutes.

Airfry

Open the basket, flip the chicken, add in the basil, spray with more oil on top, and air fryer for 4 more minutes.

Set the basil aside on a small plate.  Rest the chicken on a cooling rack and repeat the process until you finish the batch.

For Air fry:

In a Dutch oven, preheat 1/2 cup avocado oil over medium to medium-high heat for about 3-4 minutes. Test the temperature with a wooden chopstick, if it shows bubbles around the chopstick when inserting it into the oil, the temperature is hot enough.

Panfry

Over medium heat, pan-fry the first side for 3 minutes and the second side for 2-3 minutes further. Once cooked through, scoop out the chicken and set them aside to drain over a paper towel.

Lower the heat to medium-low, using a splatter guard, and carefully add the basil. Fry the basil for about 5 seconds, scoop them out using a slotted spoon, and drain on a paper towel.

To stovetop:

Preheat the oven to 450F. Line a large sheet pan with parchment. Spray a thin layer of oil on the paper then place the chicken pieces on top with some space between them.

Bake

Bake for 15 minutes, flip the chicken, and add the basil leaves. Spray with more oil on top and bake for 10 minutes further.  The chicken should be in golden brown color and cooked through. The leaves should be crispy.

To bake:

Serve

Transfer the chicken onto a serving plate, while hot, sprinkle with the popcorn chicken seasoning mix generously. Crush the fried basil leaves and sprinkle them all over the chicken. Serve hot.

To serve:

Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken is my all-time favorite street food snack and one of my favorite ways to make fried chicken! I love the unique crispy texture that&#039;s tossed with the sweet &amp; savory seasoning mix - it&#039;s so addictive! You can find these delicious pieces of chicken all over the night markets in Taiwan, and here&#039;s an easy version you can make at home!

Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken (VIDEO)

chicken

soy sauce

tbsp ginger (grated)

tsp white pepper

tbsp shaoxing wine

tsp five spice powder

tsp salt

tsp sugar

potato flour

basil

Cut 1 lb chicken thigh into similar sized 2&quot; pieces.

Marinate chicken pieces with soy sauce, grated ginger, grated garlic, white pepper, Shaoxing wine, and an egg white. Mix to combine and marinate for at least 30 minutes (up to 24 hours) in the refrigerator.

Mix together five spice powder, white pepper, salt, and sugar. This will be your seasoning. Set aside.

Dredge marinated chicken in sweet potato flour and pack well, leaving no bald spots.

Fry chicken at 350°F for 3-4 minutes; add in fresh basil at the end of cooking and fry for another 30 seconds. Cover the pot immediately after adding the basil to prevent splattering.

Sprinkle seasoning on chicken immediately after frying and enjoy!

Just made this. It turned out well, and tastes so good! Thank you :)

SO SO good. Just like at the boba shops! I've made this recipe maybe 6 times now and it's a fave among my family! Would this be good to freeze and reheat again without it losing all the goodness??

This recipe was on point! I made it for the family and my husband + 2yo daughter ate everything! He said it tastes just like the boba shop’s salt n pepper spicy chicken. (I added chili powder) 😋 thanks so much!

Delicious! I’m not a fan of sweet potato so I substituted potato starch mixed with gluten free panko. I’ve tried both chicken and pork, and my family loves both.

Okay this one was a HUGE hit with my family! They were begging me to make more!

So so tasty - wish I knew how to do this earlier. great way to get it crispy

Growing up these were the perfect family snack from the asian supermarket food court. Thank you for sharing this recipe and making it possible for me to eat these even after that booth closed down. &lt;3

This recipe is so simple and tasty! This is my favorite snack and I don't have a boba shop nearby me so this is perfect. The best Taiwanese popcorn chicken I've made!
@kaylanguyenn

Super easy to make and tasty! I'm so happy to have come across this recipe. This is my favorite snack and I'm not near any boba shop so this is perfect to make at home. The most flavorful Taiwanese popcorn chicken ever!

One of my favorite dishes to make!  Need to figure out why mine turned out not as crispy.  But the favor is great!

@pandarunner

I think I tested almost all the Fried Chicken recipes I stumbled upon. This is definitely one of my favorites! Yum!

@nicolemarimc

10/10 recipe. I couldnt find course tapioca flour but someone on IG mentioned using potato starch. So I mixed 50/50 potato starch and fine tapioca starch. You get really crispy chicken!!

If you happen to have any leftover, they can be easily reheated in the oven at 400F for 10mins and they came out even crispier!!.

Yummy!  Don't forget it's THAI Basil not the other kind. 
@moonlitesail

I've made many of your recipes but this is one of my favorites! Easy to make and tastes authentic! 

@m_comishen

@tessa501
This is the best recipe I have found for Popcorn chicken.  I tasted Popcorn Chicken on my trip to Taiwan and fell in love with it. Thank you so much for this recipe. Whenever I make and eat this it brings back memories of my trip to Taiwan.

https://content.jwplatform.com/videos/5MAPdQoS.mp4

A step by step video recipe on how to make crispy, authentic Taiwanese Popcorn chicken at home.

Top 2 taiwan popcorn chicken recipes from across the web

The most viewed taiwan popcorn chicken recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine

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Taiwanese popcorn chicken recipe

Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken (VIDEO)

Top 2 taiwan popcorn chicken recipes from across the web

The most viewed taiwan popcorn chicken recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

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Taiwanese popcorn chicken recipe

Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken (VIDEO)

The most viewed taiwan popcorn chicken recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine