How can I easily make a tasty sweet and sour chicken recipe? This dish is delicious as it combines crispy chicken with a tangy and sweet sauce, along with some vibrant vegetables and pineapple. Just follow my simple steps to recreate this mouthwatering dish at home using basic ingredients.
Ingredients:
1/2 pound of chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup of cornstarch
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup of chopped green onions
1/4 cup of pineapple chunks, drained
Sesame seeds, for garnish (optional)
For the sauce, you will need:
1/2 cup of pineapple juice
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1/4 cup of vinegar (you can use apple cider, white, or rice vinegar)
1/4 cup of ketchup
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 tablespoon of cornstarch
2 tablespoons of water
Cooking:
- In a little bowl, whisk together the pineapple juice, brown sugar, vinegar, ketchup, soy sauce, cornstarch, and water until they’re nicely combined. This will be the sauce for the dish. Set it aside for later.
- Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper, then toss them with cornstarch in a large ziplock bag or bowl. Make sure they’re coated evenly to help them get crispy when fried.
- Heat some oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces in batches and cook for about 10 minutes while turning occasionally until they turn golden and are fully cooked through. Transfer them to a plate lined with paper towels to drain off any excess oil.
- In the same pan, toss in the bell peppers and cook for around 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they become tender and slightly charred. Throw in the green onions and pineapple chunks and continue cooking for another 2 minutes until everything is heated through.
- Pour the sauce into the pan and bring it to a boil. Then, reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 5 minutes, giving it an occasional stir until the sauce thickens up nicely with a glossy appearance.
- Add back the chicken pieces to the pan and give them a good toss to coat them evenly with that delicious sauce. If you prefer, sprinkle some sesame seeds on top as well. Serve this hot alongside rice or noodles or just enjoy it as is.
The cooking time and temperature:
The total time for this dish is around 35 minutes, including about 10 minutes of prep time and approximately 25 minutes of cooking time. The key here is to fry the chicken in batches on medium-high heat so that they don’t overcrowd the pan and cook evenly. You want them to turn golden and crispy on the outside while remaining juicy and tender on the inside. This should take roughly 10 minutes per batch, depending on how large your chicken pieces are.
Another important step is to cook the vegetables until they become tender and slightly charred over medium-high heat, giving them a good stir now and then. You don’t want them to end up mushy or burnt; instead, aim for some texture and flavor. It usually takes about 5 minutes for bell peppers to reach that point, followed by an additional 2 minutes for green onions and pineapple chunks.
The next step is to let the sauce simmer over medium-low heat until it thickens and becomes glossy. stir sometimes to ensure it doesn’t become too runny or too thick, but instead has a good consistency and shine. This process should take approximately 5 minutes after bringing the sauce to a boil.
Finally, toss the chicken with the sauce and sprinkle some sesame seeds for an extra crunch and flavor. Make sure to coat the chicken well with the sauce before garnishing it with sesame seeds. This step will only take about 1 minute, and then you can serve the dish hot.
Tips:
①To ensure even and quick cooking, cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces that are approximately 1 inch each. Similarly, chop the bell peppers into chunks about 1/2 inch in size to add texture and flavor. Thinly slice the green onions to around 1/4 inch thickness for a fresh burst of color. Lastly, use pineapple chunks that are roughly 1/2 inch each to infuse sweetness and juiciness into the dish.
②For optimal coating on the chicken, season it with salt and pepper before tossing it with cornstarch in a large ziplock bag or bowl. Make sure every piece is well coated without any excess cornstarch clinging onto them. Before frying, shake off any extra cornstarch as it can burn and make the oil dirty. it’s advisable to fry the chicken in batches, so they don’t stick together or overcrowd the pan.
③To adjust the sauce to your liking for the dish, you gotta whisk together all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl until they’re well combined. Then give it a taste and tweak the sweetness, sourness, saltiness, and spiciness according to your preference. Feel free to add more or less brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, or ketchup based on what floats your boat. If you want some extra flavor and kick, throw in some red pepper flakes, garlic, ginger or honey too.
④If you’re into it, go ahead and sprinkle some sesame seeds over the chicken. You can use white ones or black ones or even mix ’em up for that added crunch and nuttiness. Plus, it’ll make the dish look way more appetizing!
The origin:
The easy sweet and sour chicken recipe is a yummy blend of Chinese and Western flavors. It’s based on gu lao rou, a traditional dish from Jiangsu province in China that features vinegar-braised pork with pineapple, sugar, soy sauce, and more. In the West, Chinese immigrants adapted the recipe to include chicken instead of pork along with ketchup and cornstarch for added flavor.
They also deep-fried the chicken to make it crispy before adding bell peppers and green onions to complete this delicious fusion dish.
Today you can find it at many Chinese restaurants or takeout places in America where it’s usually served alongside rice or noodles!
Related dishes:
Honey garlic chicken;
Orange chicken;
Chicken and broccoli;