Cantonese Crispy Fried Chicken
Photo: tissue_fleur, CC BY-SA 2.0
This is Cantonese crispy chicken made in three stages: poach, dry, then fry. Poaching in a spiced broth seasons the bird and cooks it gently, so the meat stays moist. A vinegar and sugar syrup, dried in a breeze, caramelizes in the hot oil into a brittle, deep brown skin. Toasted Sichuan peppercorn salt on the side adds a numbing, fragrant dip, and the whole thing can be prepped a day ahead.
Instructions
Toast the salt and Sichuan peppercorns in a small pan over medium to low heat until they barely smoke. Take the pan off the heat, grind the mixture finely in a mortar or with a rolling pin, then stir in the ajinomoto. This pepper salt can be made ahead.
Rinse the chicken and discard the giblets. Bring enough water to cover the chicken to a boil in a pot. Tie the five-spice powder, ginger and scallions in a cloth, add the bundle to the water, and simmer for 15 minutes.
Put the chicken in the pot, lower the heat, and poach it gently for 20 minutes. The water should stay well below a boil, since boiling makes the meat tough and dry.
Lift the chicken out, pat it dry with paper towels, and let it air dry for a short while.
Heat the vinegar and sugar in a saucepan until the sugar dissolves into a syrup. Brush it over the whole chicken, inside and out.
Leave the chicken in a breeze until the skin is very dry. This second drying is what makes the skin crisp, and it can be done a day ahead with the chicken kept in the refrigerator.
Heat the oil in a deep fryer to 350°F (175°C). Fry the chicken about 10 minutes per side, until it is brown and cooked through. Use a thermometer if your fryer has no temperature control, because oil that is too cool will not brown the sugar and oil that is too hot will burn it.
Chop the chicken with a cleaver into pieces about 1 x 2 inches. Fry the shrimp chips in the same oil and sprinkle them with a little salt.
Serve the chicken with the shrimp chips around it and a small dish of the pepper salt on the side.
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