Salt and Pepper Chicken

1. Toss the chicken with the Shaoxing wine and ½ tsp of the white pepper. Leave for 10 minutes while you prep everything else.
2. Mix the cornflour and plain flour in a bowl. Add the chicken and toss until every piece is thickly, unevenly coated — those rough edges are what go crispy.
3. Heat 4cm of oil in a wok or deep pan to 170°C. Fry the chicken in batches for 4–5 minutes until pale gold, then lift onto a rack.
4. Raise the oil to 190°C and fry everything again for 1–2 minutes until deep gold and properly crisp. Drain on the rack.
5. Mix the salt, five spice, remaining white pepper and MSG in a small bowl.
6. Pour off all but 1 tbsp of oil. Over high heat, stir-fry the capsicum, chilli and garlic for 45 seconds — they should stay bright and crunchy.
7. Return the chicken to the wok, add the spring onion, and shower over the seasoning mix. Toss hard for 20 seconds and serve straight away.

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Notes:

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• Thigh, not breast — it stays juicy through two fries
• Frying twice is the whole technique. The first fry cooks it, the second crisps it
• Season at the end, off the heat. Salt added earlier draws out moisture and softens the crust