Pan-fried Crispy Chicken

Even though I always proudly tell my friends that I eat anything and everything, but I can be quite picky when it comes to noodles. I only choose to eat noodles that are thin, like beehoon, mee sua, wonton noodle, soba, ramen and spaghettini. Anything thicker than that falls into I-shall-avoid-them-at-all-cost category. Of all the thick noodles out there, the one that I dislike the most is yellow noodle, partly due to its texture but the main reason that really turn me off is the taste of alkali water.

However, I happened to try out yellow noodle in Taiwan recently and I'm surprised that I like it! The local version is thinner and springier than the ones sold in Malaysia and Singapore, and the best part is, the taste of the alkali water is not detectable at all. Since the start of summer, I've been buying yellow noodle from the wet market very often and make cold noodle (涼麵) for lunch. There are a few sauces that I often used in my cold noodle dishes and my favourite has to be the one that is made of thick soy sauce (醬油膏), sugar, water and mashed garlic. It is not visible in the picture above but the noodle had been tossed in this sauce. Topped with some shredded carrots and cucumber and it is the dish that I have for 3-4 times a week.

I cooked cold noodle again today but since hubby is at home for lunch, I prepared another dish to go with the noodle. I learnt this pan-fried crispy chicken dish from TV some time back and I've been cooking it regularly ever since. This dish is really yummy because the chicken is really crispy on the outside but the inside is still moist and juicy, which is made possible by covering the pan while cooking. As explained by the chef of the TV programme, the steam generated in the covered pan will retain the moisture and to make the outside crispy, only remove the cover when the chicken is almost cooked, and then pan-fried both sides until golden brown. I find that this method of making cripsy chicken pieces is healthier as less oil is used and it is much easier than deep-frying too!

Pan-fried Crispy Chicken Recipe

Ingredients:
1 large piece of chicken thigh
1 red chilli, chopped
1 stalk spring onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
2-3 stalks coriander, chopped
1/3 teaspoon salt
Black pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon soy sauce

Method:
1) Season the chicken with salt and black pepper. Heat up oil in a frying pan.
2) Place the thigh skin down onto the pan, let it fry for about 1 minute. Using a tong or a pair of chopsticks, flip the thigh over and continue to cook for another minute.
3) Cover the pan, let the thigh cook in low-medium heat for 5 minutes.
4) Remove the cover, flip the thigh with the skin down and cook until it turns golden brown. Again, flip the thigh up and then move it to the side of the pan.
5) At the other side of the pan, saute garlic, chilli and spring onion until fragrant. Add soy sauce and coriander, make a few quick stirs and then turn off the heat.
6) Remove the thigh from the pan, cut into a few pieces. Spoon the sauteed spring onion mixture on top, serve hot.