Breaded chicken breast with a Chinese spice mix

Break the star anise and a small piece of cinnamon apart so they toast evenly and add them to a cast iron skillet with a teaspoon each of black peppercorn, Sichuan peppercorn, cumin seeds and white peppercorn.

Toast on low heat a few minutes until fragrant, then blend to a fine powder. Only a teaspoon is used here; save the rest.

Slice the chicken breast into two pieces about a quarter of an inch thick.

Hit the chicken with the rough side of a meat tenderizer, not to flatten it but to break up the meat fibres and leave a rough surface that catches more batter and breadcrumbs.

Marinate with half a teaspoon of salt, one and a half teaspoons of soy sauce, a tablespoon of Chinese cooking wine and a teaspoon of the spice mix.

Add a quarter teaspoon of baking soda and a drizzle of olive oil and massage the chicken until all the liquid is absorbed.

Cover and leave 20 minutes.

Sift about three tablespoons of cornstarch over the chicken through a sieve to make a nice thick even coating.

Shake off the excess cornstarch, dip the chicken in beaten egg, then coat it with bread crumb and pat gently to reinforce it; shake off the excess.

Cover and leave in the fridge 20 minutes so the bread crumbs bond together.

For the sauce stir two cloves of garlic, a teaspoon of soy sauce, a tablespoon of sriracha, a tablespoon of hoisin sauce, three tablespoons of sugar and one and a half tablespoons of lime juice over medium heat and bring it to a boil, looking for a thin syrup texture.

Add a generous amount of oil to the pan, put the breaded chicken in and fry on medium heat 3 to 5 minutes each side until golden brown; the meat is thin so it will be cooked through.

Take it out onto kitchen paper to get rid of the grease and cut it into the size you like.

Serve on top of white rice with shredded carrot, shredded cabbage, blanched broccoli and a cooked egg sliced in half, and pour the sauce over the chicken.