Exclusive Spicy Pepper and Diced Lotus Root Chicken

Prepare ingredients: Cut lotus root into 1 cm cubes, diagonally slice Erjingtiao chili, cut green pointed peppers and small chili peppers into 5 mm rings, cut small chili peppers into 2 mm rings, chop garlic into pieces about 5 mm, shred ginger, and diagonally cut green onions into 5 cm sections.

Marinated Chicken Pieces: Ask the lady selling chicken to cut it up, and cut it smaller, into 1-2 cm cubes. Wash them and drain a bit, then add: cooking wine, salt, white sugar, pepper, oyster sauce, light soy sauce, and a little dark soy sauce. Use your left hand, right hand, or both hands together to massage the chicken until it becomes a little sticky. Add some starch, knead it evenly, and marinate for seventeen, eighteen, nineteen minutes or longer.

Fried Chicken: Use about half a catty or more of oil, bring it to a boil to remove any fishy smell, and then let it cool. Heat the oil to about 60% hot, add the chicken cubes, and fry on high heat. Since water and chicken fat will come out from the chicken, the oil will become a mixture of oil and water. Don’t panic; continue frying for a while until most of the water in the oil evaporates and it starts to bubble like normal frying. Remove the chicken, keep the heat on, wait for a minute or two, then fry the chicken again until it’s crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. The exact frying time depends on your preferred texture. Remove the chicken.

Fried lotus root: It's still the same oil, fry the lotus root, just fry it until it's almost cooked, the lotus root pieces are crispy and taste good. Take them out and put them together with the chicken.

Soul juice, pour over: pour out some of the remaining oil, leaving about 100g. Bring to a boil, then add garlic cloves, shredded ginger, green onions, and two or three small bunches of green Sichuan peppercorns. When the aroma comes out, continue to add Erjingtiao peppers, green pointed peppers, and small chili peppers, and stir-fry. When these peppers are almost cooked, add the chicken and diced lotus root back in and stir-fry over high heat throughout. Add 50g of soul juice wild mountain peppers and the water they were soaked in.

Ready to serve: Stir-fry until you reach the preferred texture (if it’s too dry, add a little of the leftover oil, if it’s too oily, pour some out), then add some green Sichuan peppercorns, stir-fry until crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, turn off the heat and plate, then sprinkle a layer of white sesame seeds. Taste in the middle to see if additional salt is needed.