Glorious gluten-free

Give yourself a treat with these deliciously easy dishes from awardwinning blogger Becky Excell

Korean-style Fried Chicken Tenders

SERVES 3-4

INGREDIENTS

■ 125g cornflour

■ 1 tsp salt

■ 600g chicken breast mini fillets

■ 500ml vegetable oil

■ Handful of roasted peanuts, chopped (gluten-free)

■ 2 tbsp sesame seeds

■ Handful of spring onion greens, shredded (optional)

1

In a large bowl, mix your cornflour with the salt. Add the chicken fillets and toss until well coated, squeezing the chicken and compacting the flour to it as much as you can.

2

Grab a large, heavy-based saucepan and pour in the vegetable oil until it is about

2.5cm deep.

3

Place over a medium heat until the oil reaches 170˚C/340˚F.

For the sauce:

■ 60ml gluten-free soy sauce

■ 150ml maple syrup

■ 1 tsp dried chilli flakes

■ 1 tsp minced ginger paste

■ 1 tsp miso paste (gluten-free)

■ 1 tbsp tomato ketchup

■ 1 tbsp rice-wine vinegar

■ 1 tbsp garlic-infused oil

■ 1 tbsp cornflour

■ 2 tbsp cold water

You can test the temperature with a cooking thermometer.

4

In two batches, carefully lower the coated chicken into the oil – it should sizzle nicely.

5

Cook for about 5 minutes or until the crispy coating starts to turn golden. If the oil covers the chicken, you don’t need to turn it.

6

Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon and transfer to a wire rack over a baking tray. 7

Once all the chicken is done, refry in two batches in the oil for another 4-5 minutes. This is the key to making them super-crunchy, so don’t skip this bit!

8

Remove and transfer back to the wire rack to drain once more.

9

For the sauce, combine everything except the cornflour and water in a large wok. Bring to a boil and simmer for 4-5 minutes. 10

Mix the cornflour and water together in a small dish, drizzle into the wok and stir in immediately. Allow to simmer until the sauce thickens.

11

Finally, scatter over the peanuts and add the crunchy fried chicken to the wok. Mix until everything is well coated and sprinkle with sesame seeds and shredded spring onion. Serve immediately.