Sweet and Sour Chicken

I’ve been digging around the junk drawer that is my draft folder. In a concerted effort to clear out the mental clutter, I’m posting this drafts ‘as is’….

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Adapted from Alice Currah @ PSB Parents

BAH Note: This dish is as elusive as a yeti with regards to having its picture taken. I’ve made it a bunch of times and never managed to document its existence. The only note I wrote down on the recipe was “omg yes”.

10 ounce crushed pineapple in juice
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 1/2 pounds chicken breast or thigh (boneless, skinless)
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Drain the juice from can of pineapple into a small saucepan, leaving the crushed pineapple in the can. Add 1/2 tablespoon (1 1/2 teaspoons) cornstarch and whisk together until the cornstarch is dissolved. Whisk in the brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, and ketchup and cook over medium heat until the sauce begins to simmer. Continue to cook for about five minutes, stirring, until the sauce thickens. Move the pan off the heat while you prep the chicken.

Cut the chicken into one inch cubes and place them into a plastic bag. Add the kosher salt and remaining 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Close the top of the bag and shake to coat the chicken.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and cook the chicken in batches, adding additional oil as needed, until lightly browned and cooked through. Return all the chicken to the pan and add the sauce and crushed pineapple. Cook for about 3 minutes until everything is warmed through.

Serve over steamed rice.

{printable recipe}

My journeys around these Interwebs leads me some interesting places. Some I come back to time after time for inspiration and ideas. And thanks to those sites, I discover new destinations on a daily basis. I’m telling you, it really IS a world wide web y’all. Today I’d like you to journey with me to the world of the Brown Eyed Baker for some Sweet and Sour Chicken.

In her post, Michelle said, “This recipe, although it takes awhile to get from the stove to your plate, is well worth the effort. The flavor of the sauce is perfect, the texture of the chicken is wonderful and all together, you’d think you ordered this from the neighborhood Chinese restaurant.” Yeah, what she said. For two reasons:

1 – This dish will take you a long ass time to get on the table. So don’t come home, casually glance over the recipe and seeing that nothing needs to be marinated, decide to settle into watching that episode of The Gilmore Girls that’s sitting on your dvr before you start dinner. You will be very sorry when you come back into the kitchen at 6:30 only to realize that you’re not going to eat until about 8pm.

2 – Assuming that you choose to ignore #1 above, it will still be worth the effort to start making this even if you don’t get to eat until 8pm. Because this Sweet and Sour Chicken is that good.

Somewhere between coating and battering and browning the chicken, I had my doubts. There was also some pesky basting every 15 minutes for the hour of oven time. And then there was the whole it’s late and I’m really hungry whining going on in my head. I was determined that under no circumstances would I like this dish. But if the happy dance I did as soon as I took one bite of a sticky, glazed, tangy, sweet morsel is any indication, my determination is no match for Sweet and Sour Chicken.

Sorry Luke, Lorelai, Rory, and Logan, but you’re no match for Sweet and Sour Chicken either. The next time this comes up on the week’s menu, y’all are just going to have to chill out in dvr land until I get SSC in the oven. If you tasted even one bite, you’d understand completely.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Brown Eyed Baker’s Adaptation of Amber’s Take Out Fake Out

BAH Note: Unless you scale this recipe down and only make half (which isn’t a bad idea if you cook for one), I suggest working in batches from the point where the chicken goes into the cornstarch. I also suggest being prepared to get your hands pretty dirty because I found that my hands were the best tool for getting the chicken from the cornstarch to the egg and then the frying pan. Just remember to wash them thoroughly after handing the chicken.

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup cornstarch
3 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Heat the oven to 325 degrees.

Combine the sugar, ketchup, vinegar, soy sauce and garlic powder in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Set sauce aside.

Cut the chicken breasts into bite sized chunks. Place the cornstarch in a resealable plastic bag, add the chicken pieces, and shake to coat.

Crack the eggs into a medium sized bowl and whisk. Shake excess cornstarch from chicken and coat chicken with egg.

Heat half the oil over medium high heat in a large frying pan, add half of the chicken, and brown on all sides. Remove cooked chicken to a 9×13 baking dish and repeat with the remaining chicken.

Pour the sauce over the chicken and give it a stir once or twice so the pieces are well coated. Bake for 1 hour, basting and turning the chicken in the sauce every 15 minutes.

{printable recipe}