No. 1 Sweet Chilli Popcorn Chicken

Rinse the rice until the water runs clear (see Kitchen 101). Put in a small saucepan with 250ml (1 cup) water, cover and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 12 mins or until tender and the water is absorbed. Turn off the heat and stand, covered, for at least 5 mins. Fluff the rice with a fork.

Meanwhile, put the sweet chilli sauce, 2 tbs tomato sauce and 3 tsp soy sauce in a large bowl. Season with pepper and stir to combine. Transfer 1 tbs sweet chilli sauce mixture to a separate bowl, add 2 tbs mayonnaise and stir to combine.

Cut the chicken into 3cm chunks and season with salt and pepper. Whisk 1 egg in a shallow bowl. Put the cornflour in a separate shallow bowl. Dip the chicken in egg, then dust with cornflour and shake off the excess. Heat 2 tbs vegetable oil in a small saucepan over high heat. Working in batches, cook the chicken for 3 mins or until browned and cooked through. Remove from pan.

Bring a small saucepan of water to the boil for the broccoli. Cut the broccoli stem into 1cm chunks, then cut the head into small florets. Add the broccoli to the pan of boiling water and cook for 2-3 mins until tender. Drain.

While the broccoli is cooking, thinly slice the spring onion. Add the fried chicken to the reserved sweet chilli sauce mixture and gently stir to coat. Divide the rice, sweet chilli chicken and broccoli among bowls. Scatter with the spring onion and drizzle with the mayonnaise mixture. Enjoy!

Want to know the secret to light, fluffy rice? Rinse the rice two or three times before cooking to remove the excess starch, as this is what causes the grains to clump together.