Sweet and Sour Pan Fried Chicken

See me in my kitchen, doing a happy dance. I am so thrilled with how the pan-fried chicken came out – a technique I had struggled to master. I remember the first time I attempted to make batter fried chicken for a lemon chicken recipe. To say it was a disaster would be putting it mildly. The recipe called for the chicken to be dipped, then fried in a wok. The problem I had with my wok was that the chicken did not have room to spread out, to be surrounded in hot oil. The result was a big clump of chicken. When I tried to break it apart, most of the batter pulled away from the chicken. It was one hot mess. I gave up and began baking the chicken instead. Baking, while healthier, did not produce that golden puffy goodness you expect with Chinese Chicken dishes. I surrendered to the fact that the only way to get good, crisp fried chicken like the ones you get from a Chinese Restaurant was to order take-out or eat at a Chinese restaurant.

For whatever the reason, I decided to give it one last try at home. I read my recipe, remembered all the different dos and don’ts I have seen on all those cooking shows, and thought about my own failed disasters. Failure isn’t failure unless you learn nothing from the experience. Believe me, I learned. All those lessons have been incorporated and now I am proud to say I’ve got this. While this recipe is for Sweet and Sour Chicken, the cooking technique of the chicken is the same for many dishes – simply by changing up the sauce, you can create perfect Orange Chicken, Lemon Chicken, or a whole host of yummy dishes. This batter could also be used on shrimp or scallops as well.

• Do make the batter in advance and give it time to come together
• Do let the chicken sit in the batter for a good coating before frying
• Do fry in hot oil – test the oil by dropping a little bit of batter into the oil. It should immediately begin to float and puff up
• Do use a skillet with a wide cooking surface to get the chicken plenty of room
• Do Not overcrowd the skillet or let the chicken touch – it will clump together
• Do have a plan to keep the chicken warm without making it soggy. If you have a lot of chicken pieces to fry, the cooked chicken can be held in a warm oven. Line one or two rimmed baking pans with foil. Place a wire rack in each pan and place in the oven. By having the chicken elevated on the rack, they will retain all that wonderful, crisp, golden exterior.

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Sweet and Sour Pan Fried Chicken
Sweet and Sour Sauce
1 (8 oz) can Pineapple Chunks, juices reserved
1 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup White Sugar
1/2 cup Distilled White Vinegar
4 drops Orange Food Coloring
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup Chicken Broth

Place a strainer over a cup or bowl, drain pineapple and reserve the juice. Set pineapple chunks aside.

In a saucepan, combine water, sugar, vinegar, reserved pineapple juice and food coloring.
Place saucepan over medium-high heat and stir until sugar has dissolved. Let liquid come to a full boil.

In a small bowl or measuring cup, blend cornstarch with chicken broth. Set aside until liquid in saucepan comes to a boil.

Remove saucepan from heat. Slowly add cornstarch mixture to the saucepan. Continue to stir until the mixture begins to thicken.

Return to low heat and let sauce simmer, stirring occasionally.

Pan Fried Chicken
2 1/4 cups Self-rising flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1 egg
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups water
3 large Boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts
Vegetable oil for frying

In a large bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, salt and white pepper. Whisk to blend.

In a small bowl, whisk egg with vegetable oil. Pour egg mixture into flour mixture and stir to blend.

Add water, 1/2 cup at a time and blend with a fork to create a thick batter. Set aside and let rest.

Rinse chicken breasts and pat dry with paper towels. Lay breasts on a cutting board and cut into 1-inch chunks.

Place chicken pieces into the batter. Stir to get all the chicken pieces well coated. Set aside while the oil heats.

Heat oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat to 350 degrees. Oil should be about 2 inches deep.

Using tongs and working in batches, remove chicken one piece at a time and place in hot oil. DO NOT overcrowd the pan or allow pieces to touch while frying. Fry for about 5 minutes, turn or roll over and continue to fry another 5 minutes, until pieces are golden and puffy.

Remove chicken pieces from skillet using a slotted spoon, drain on paper towel to absorb excess oil. Repeat until all the chicken pieces have been fried.

Garnish
1 Red Bell Pepper, chopped
1 Orange Bell Pepper, chopped
Pineapple Chunks

While chicken is frying, core and cut bell peppers into chunks. Spread out in a microwave safe dish. Place into microwave and heat on high for about 3 minutes. The peppers should be warm yet retain that fresh crispness.

Remove peppers from microwave, add pineapple chunks and toss to combine. Set aside until ready to use.

When ready to serve, pile chicken in the center of a large serving platter. Arrange peppers and pineapple in a circle around the chicken. Drizzle some of the sauce over the chicken, reserve remaining sauce to be added at table side.

Serve chicken with the sauce and enjoy!