Happy Valentine’s Day, lovies!! I started off the day with a lip mask from Sephora. It actually worked pretty well in my opinion. Perfect for Valentine kisses. haha Just kidding.

Scruffy came over and he walked into his room to drop off his things and found this pile of goodies.

[2018] 045/365: Valentine Rice Krispies Treats

One of which was heart-shaped rice Krispies treats Juhi and I made last night that I was hesitant to post in case he checked the blog for once. I’ve been asked if they were professionally made by a few people and was surprised when he also asked. I guess I should start a rice Krispies business. It might actually help me rake in some money since I’m unemployed.

He let me chose the restaurant, treating me to Cafe Caspian. We started off with Hummus, Sabzeh, and Tandoori Bread.

By the time our main meals arrived, lamb shanks for me and Kubideh for him, we were a bit stuffed and nibbled on a bit packing the rest to go.

I decided to try out Mum’s new fryer and made Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken, recipe below. I was surprised how well they actually turned out. I thought it would have been a hot mess and everyone complaining.

I was surprised every single piece of chicken was polished off along with other foods we had on the table!

Print

Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken

Course: Appetizer, Main Course, Snack

Cuisine: Asian, Chinese, Taiwanese

Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients

Marinating

• 1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 medium head of garlic
• 1/2 inch ginger
• 3 green onions white and 1-inch of the green part, minced
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp mirin or rice wine
• 1 tsp potato starch or corn starch/flour/breadcrumbs
• 1/2 tsp Chinese Five Spice
• 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Coating

• 1 eggs
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 2-3 cups potato starch

Frying

• 3-4 cups peanut oil or vegetable oil

Serving

• Leaves from 1 bunch of fresh Thai Basil
• 1 tbsp salt to taste
• 1 tbsp white pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp cayenne pepper to taste
• 1/2 tbsp sugar to taste

Preparations

1. Remove the fat and cut the chicken into 1-inch chunks. Place in large bowl.

2. Make the marinade by adding all the ingredients to the bowl of chicken. Mix to coat all the chicken. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to overnight.

3. Once the chicken is done marinating, beat the egg with the 1/2 cup of water in a bowl. Place the sweet potato starch in another bowl.

4. Heat the frying oil until it reaches 350˚F.

5. While the oil is heating up, dip the chicken in the egg mixture first, then in the potato starch.

6. Once the oil reaches the right temperature, fry the Thai basil leaves for 30 seconds or until they darken.* This helps flavour the oil. Scoop them out and lay them on a wire rack or a plate lined with paper towels to drain off the excess oil.

7. Fry the chicken pieces for about 5 minutes or until golden brown. Make sure not to add too many pieces into the pot. Scoop them out and lay them with the leaves.

8. Immediately toss with generous amounts of salt, white pepper, cayenne pepper, and sugar, to taste.

Notes

*When frying Thai basil leaves, keep in mind of the big splash back due to the moisture in the leaves. I used a fryer and had a lid I quickly closed as I lowered the basket into the oil.

Cafe Caspian
12126 Westheimer Road, Houston, Texas 77077  |  (281) 493-4000  |  Website  |  Yelp