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A plate of Salt and Pepper Chicken pieces with onions, chillies, and spring onions on a dark plate.
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Air Fryer Salt and Pepper Chicken

Golden, juicy chicken pieces, in a crispy coating with that classic Chinese five spice flavour. PLUS chunky sweet-crunchy onions, chillies and spring onions.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Chinese
Keyword: air fryer, crispy chicken, Fakeaway, spiced chicken
Servings: 4
Author Nicky Corbishley

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)
    Salt and Pepper Chicken pieces with chopped onion, scallions and chillies in an air fryer basket, seen from above.
  • 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

Calories: 249kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 119mg | Sodium: 1282mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g

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