In a small bowl, combine the seasoning mix - salt, 5-spice, white pepper, sugar, garlic powder, and ground Szechuan peppercorn. If you haven’t had szechuan peppercorn before, start with a little, taste, and adjust if you’d like more for that tingly-numbing effect! Be careful not to add too much though, otherwise, it’ll overpower with a strong floral flavor.

Add a few pieces of chicken to the dredge at a time, pressing or scrunching the potato starch & its crumbles into the chicken so it really sticks. Repeat for remaining chicken & let chicken rest for 10-15 minutes - this will help the starch better stick to the chicken instead of falling off when cooking!

Re-heat the pot of oil on medium-high, then once hot, add chicken back in batches. Again, don’t overcrowd otherwise your chicken won’t get to maximum crispiness! Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until a slightly darker brown & only small bubbles are showing in the oil. Remove, drain on a wire rack or paper towel-lined plate.

Turn off the heat, add the basil leaves to the oil, and QUICKLY cover with a lid to avoid splattering. Cook for about 1 minute, or until you no longer hear popping / splattering. Remove basil leaves.