Golden, juicy chicken pieces, in a crispy coating with that classic Chinese five spice flavour. PLUS chunky sweet-crunchy onions, chillies and spring onions (scallions). It’s a fakeaway favourite that’s lighter on oil but full on flavour!!
Nicky’s Recipe Notes
Salt and Pepper Chicken is so totally moreish that every time I’ve made this recipe it’s gone in 5 minutes (I’m so glad the kids are back to school/uni now, so I can actually eat some of the food I’ve cooked!).
The coating is super crispy-yet-light (thanks to the cornflour (cornstarch in USA)) and has a real depth of flavour with the addition of salt, pepper and of course Chinese five spice.
Why is it one of my top air fryer recipes?
✅ It’s lovely and crispy without the need for lots of oil
✅ It’s fairly budget friendly – using chicken thighs, instead of chicken breast
✅ It’s a real crowd pleaser – when the teens have their friends round, when the grown-ups are having a beer and watching football, or as part of a Friday-night-fakeway banquet
✅ The spice level is adjustable – add heat by using Thai chillies, remove heat by using bell peppers
Table of Contents
📋 Ingredients
Chicken thighs – I like to use chicken thighs in this recipe as the chicken needs to cook for around 20 mins to get that golden crispness. Thigh meat stays juicier and more tender with this high heat cooking than chicken breast – which dries out easier. You can replace with breast meat if preferred, just make sure the pieces are big enough that they won’t dry out.
Chinese five spice – is a must for that authentic flavour! It gives the chicken coating a really tasty moreish flavour.
Chillies – The type you choose depends on how hot you like it. I tend to use Fresno or Serrano chillies which are just a little bit spicy. You can use hotter Chillies (Thai chillies are HOT but great!) or replace with red and green bell pepper if you don’t like the heat at all.
Spray oil is your best friend with the air fryer. I’ve got a generic supermarket spray oil in the image above, but i’ve since become a total convert to this Vilgain Avocado oil (<–aff link) – it’s gives a nice even mist, has no flavour and can stand up to high heat cooking without burning. I don’t think it’s available in the USA, but Chosen Avocado oil (<–aff link) is a similar one that works great and is more widely available.
Abbreviated recipe instructions
***Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post***
Mix cornflour, 5-spice and seasoning and coat the chicken in this mixture. Place in air fryer basket, spray with oil and cook for 20 mins at 200C/400F. Remove chicken, add seasoned onion + spray oil. Air fry for 5 mins. Add chillies, air fry for 2 mins. Add spring onions and chicken. Air fry for 1 min. Serve.
Pro Tip
Twenty minutes seems like a long time for the chicken to be in the air fryer, but don’t worry, so long as you don’t use tiny pieces of chicken, the thigh meat will stand up well to this longer cooking.
The Chinese five spice actually slows down the browning process of the coating due to the antioxidants in some of the spices, so we have to go a bit longer if you want that golden finish.
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Air Fryer Salt and Pepper Chicken
Equipment
- Double Stack Air Fryer – you can of course use a regular single-basket air fryer, but you'll likely need to cook in two batches
- Spray Oil – I use avocado oil
Ingredients
Chicken
- 5 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch in USA)
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp Chinese five spice
- 500 g (1.1lb) skinless chicken thigh fillets quartered
- spray oil (about 20 squirts altogether)
Also
- 1 large onion peeled and chopped into large chunks
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 red chilli pepper (I use serrano or fresno) finely diced
- green chilli pepper (I use serrano or fresno) finely diced
- 3 spring onions (scallions) roughly chopped
Instructions
- Mix the cornflour, salt, pepper and Chinese five spice together in a large bowl.5 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch in USA), 1 tsp salt, 2 tsp black pepper, 2 tsp Chinese five spice
- Add the chicken and toss together to thoroughly coat each piece.500 g (1.1lb) skinless chicken thigh fillets
- Arrange in the the air fryer basket in a single layer (you may need to work in two batches if you're air fryer basket is too small).
- Squirt the chicken with spray oil then air fry at 200C/400F for 20 minutes, shaking twice during cooking. Remove the chicken from the air fryer and place in a bowl.spray oil
- Add the onion, garlic salt and black pepper to the air fryer basket and toss together. Spray with spray oil and air fry for 5 minutes at 200C/400F .1 large onion, 1 tsp garlic salt, 1 tsp black pepper
- Add the chopped chillies, toss and air fry for a further 2 minutes. Then add the springs onions and the chicken. Toss together and fry for a further 1-2 minutes, until the chicken is hot.1 red chilli pepper (I use serrano or fresno), green chilli pepper (I use serrano or fresno), 3 spring onions (scallions)
- Serve with your favourite sides.
Notes
Why do we remove the chicken?
Because we’re adding quite a lot of onion, the addition of the onions into the air fryer releases moisture, which stops the chicken becoming crispy.20 minutes sounds a long time for air fryer chicken pieces
It takes this long for the chicken to get golden and crispy (cornflour coatings take longer to brown than panko-style coatings, especially when they have Chinese five spice in, which acts as a browning inhibitor). Don’t worry though, we’re using chicken thighs, which are much better at standing up to high heat cooking, without drying out. The result is crispy AND juicy. Nutritional information is approximate, per serving (this recipe serves 4)Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Pin this now to find it later
Pin It🍽️ What to serve it with
- Egg Fried Rice, Special Fried Rice or Chips
- Sweet Chilli Sauce, Sweet and Sour Sauce or Bang Bang Sauce
- As part of a banquet with saucy dishes such as Chinese Chicken Curry, Honey Garlic Chicken or Crispy Orange Beef
? Frequently Asked Questions
You can, but it will be a softer coating with less crunch. Potato starch or rich flour is a better alternative if you haven’t got cornflour, but plain (all-purpose) flour will work in a pinch.
Any leftover Salt & Pepper Chicken can be cooled and stored in a airtight container in the fridge for up to two days.
Air fry at 160C/320F, with a spray of oil, for 4-5 minutes to reheat.
🍲 More crispy chicken recipes
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