Popcorn chicken is made with small bite-size pieces of chicken that are lightly spiced, breaded and fried. They are super crispy outside and soft and juicy inside.
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time15 minutesmins
Total Time25 minutesmins
Course: snacks/starters
Cuisine: American
Servings: 4people
Calories: 280kcal
Author: Preeti
Equipment
Mixing bowl
Deep bottom pan/skillet
Ingredients
200-gramboneless chickencut into small bite-size chunks
1teaspoonginger-garlic paste
1teaspoonblack pepper
salt to taste
½teaspoonpaprikaor red chili powder
1teaspoonchicken masala powderor Italan seasoning
1teaspooncornflour
1egg white
1teaspoonvinegaror lemon juice
1cupbreadcrumbs
oil to deep fry
Instructions
Preparations:
Slice the chicken breasts into small, bite-size chunks.
In a mixing bowl, combine chicken, ginger-garlic paste, salt, pepper, paprika, chicken masala powder, cornflour, egg white, and vinegar. Cover with a cling wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Frying the Popcorn Chicken
Heat oil in a pan over medium heat.
Add a few chicken pieces. Do not stir it immediately. Let it fry for a minute.
Stir and fry it until crisp and golden.
Remove and place it on a plate lined with kitchen tissue to drain away excess oil.
Serve popcorn chicken immediately with tomato sauce or your favorite dip.
Video
Notes
Marinating the chicken for atleast two hours is important. The chicken soaks all the flavors and it tastes so good. Also, it keeps the chicken soft and tender when you deep fry it.
Once you coat the raw chicken with the spices and breadcrumbs, transfer it to a ziplock bag and freeze, to use later. It stays good in the freezer for a month. Just thaw and deep fry it.
While frying, make sure the oil is medium hot. If it is too hot, chicken pieces will fry quickly from outside and will remain uncooked from inside.
If the oil is not hot enough then the chicken pieces will soak oil and will become oily.
To check the exact temperature of oil, drop a bread crumb in hot oil. If it rises without getting brown quickly then the oil is ready.
After adding chicken to the pan, do not stir it immediately. Let the chicken fry for a minute then stir and fry it. Otherwise, the breadcrumbs will come out and get mixed in oil.
Fry the chicken pieces in small batches. Do not overcrowd the pan. It will reduce the temperature of the oil and the popcorn will not be crisp.
Do not skip eggs in the recipe. It helps to keep the chicken soft and moist.
If you want to substitute eggs then you have to brine the chicken pieces. Brine it in buttermilk and salt mixture overnight (cover and keep it in the refrigerator).
You can bake the popcorn chicken. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Line the baking tray with parchment paper. Spray butter or oil over it. Place the chicken coated with breadcrumbs on the tray. Drizzle some oil on top of it. Bake it for 12 minutes. Flip the chicken pieces. Bake for 10 minutes. Take it out. Your Baked Chicken Popcorn is ready. But it will be less crispy than fried ones.