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Crispy Salt and Pepper Chicken

Name: Crispy Salt and Pepper Chicken
Prep time: 9 min
Total time: 24 min
Cuisine: Chinese-American
Ingredients: boneless chicken — 680 g; soy sauce — 30 g; dry sherry — 15 g; egg white — 100 g; cornstarch — 177 g; vegetable oil — 871 g; salt — 5 g; freshly ground black pepper — 5 g; spice powder — 3 g; garlic — 12 g; scallions — 300 g; jalapeo peppers — 200 g; red bell pepper — 100 g; vegetable oil — 14 g

Crispy Salt and Pepper Chicken reads umami 6.0, richness 5.9 and salinity 5.4 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Chinese-American main, about 24 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

Umami & Savory — 6.8 / 10
Sweet & Fruity — 3.7 / 10
Sour & Bright — 1.7 / 10
Bitter & Earthy — 1.4 / 10
Rich & Fat — 6.5 / 10
Aromatic & Spice — 4.3 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Umami 6.0 · Richness 5.9 · Salinity 5.4 · Allium 3.8 · Sweetness 3.1 · Funk & Ferment 2.8 · Herbaceous 2.3 · Heat 2.2 · Fruity 2.1 · Nutty 2.1 · Warm Spice 2.0 · Sourness 1.4 · Bitterness 1.3 · Citrus 1.1 · Floral 0.9 · Earthy 0.8

What's in it (14)

boneless chicken — 680 g
soy sauce — 30 g
dry sherry — 15 g
egg white — 100 g
cornstarch — 177 g
vegetable oil — 871 g
salt — 5 g
freshly ground black pepper — 5 g
spice powder — 3 g
garlic — 12 g
scallions — 300 g
jalapeo peppers — 200 g
red bell pepper — 100 g
vegetable oil — 14 g

Time & effort: about 24 min (9 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 168.7 kcal, 13 g protein, 8.1 g fat, 11.1 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat · Contains egg — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (8 steps)

In a medium bowl, toss the chicken thigh pieces with the soy sauce, dry sherry, and egg white; let sit at room temperature while you prep the vegetables, about 15 minutes.
Set a wire rack over a sheet pan. Pour the frying oil into a wok or Dutch oven and heat over medium-high heat to 350°F.
Spread the cornstarch on a plate. Working in two batches, lift the chicken from the marinade, dredge each piece in cornstarch until coated, shake off the excess, and fry until pale golden and cooked through (165°F internal), 4-5 minutes; transfer to the rack.
Let the oil return to 350°F between batches. Once all the chicken has been fried once, return it to the oil in one batch and fry again until deeply golden and shatteringly crisp, about 2 minutes; drain on the rack and season immediately with a pinch of the kosher salt.
In a small bowl, stir together the remaining kosher salt, black pepper, and five-spice powder.
Wipe out the wok, add the remaining tablespoon of vegetable oil, and heat over high heat until shimmering. Add the garlic, scallion whites, jalapeños, and bell pepper; stir-fry until fragrant and the edges are blistered, 60-90 seconds.
Return the fried chicken to the wok, sprinkle with the salt-pepper blend, and toss constantly until every piece is coated and glossy, about 30 seconds.
Remove from the heat, stir in the scallion greens, and serve right away while the crust is still crackling.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

Baked Manicotti — Italian-American
Gnocchi With Zucchini Ribbons & Basil Brown Butter — American
Pasta Fagioli with Italian Sausage — Italian-American
Cajun Chicken Pasta Recipe — Cajun/Creole
Rigatoni alla Vodka with Italian Sausage — Italian-American

Keep reading: what umami, richness, salinity mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.