Taiwanese popcorn chicken

1 Dice the chicken into small bite-size pieces. Combine the soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and ginger with the five spice, salt, pepper and egg white. Mix well then add the chicken. Ensure it is well coated and leave for at least 10 minutes or overnight in the fridge.

2 Heat the oil in a saucepan. Once a cube of bread sizzles in it, then it's ready to fry.

3 Place the cornflour in a bowl. Coat the chicken in the cornflour. Shake off any excess. Lower the chicken pieces into the hot oil in batches. Fry until golden brown and cooked through, five to eight minutes.

4 Carefully fry some of the basil leaves for the final minute. Stand back when you add the basil as it may spit. Remove the chicken and basil, and leave to drain on a cooling rack over a tray for a minute. Serve sprinkled with the fried basil, fresh basil, spring onions, and a dusting of paprika, salt and pepper.