Rinse the chicken wings and pat dry with a kitchen towel.
Toss the chicken wings with the salt and pepper.
Place in a covered container and marinate in the fridge for six hours or overnight.
Place the marinated chicken in a bowl, add the cornstarch and toss to coat each piece evenly. Shake off any excess.
Heat the cooking oil in a wok or frying pan, and fry the chicken wings in batches until lightly golden and crisp.
In the same oil in which the chicken wings were fried, drop in the Thai basil leaves and cook until translucent and crisp. Scoop out and place in a bowl lined with paper towels.
Pour off the oil leaving only a small amount to coat the bottom of the pan.
Over low heat, cook the minced garlic until lightly browned.
Add the salted duck egg yolk paste and cook, stirring, until the paste thins out and spreads.
Drop in the fried chicken wings and toss to coat each piece.
Serve your fried chicken wings with salted duck egg yolk sauce garnished with fried basil leaves.