I am always shocked at how easy Asian food is to make. And this Sweet & Sour Chicken recipe is hardly difficult. Slightly time consuming if you use a small pot to deep fry the chicken, but even still, it usually takes me about 30 minutes to make.
Ingredients for Sweet and Sour Chicken
- 1 can pineapple chunks, drained with juice reserved (8 ounce)
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar (I use brown rice vineagar*)
- 2 drops orange food color (I didn’t have food color so the sauce in the picture is clear)
- 8 skinless, boneless chicken breast cut into 1-inch cubes
- 2 1/4 cups self-rising flour
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 quart oil for frying
- 2 bell peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces
Instructions for Sweet and Sour Chicken
- In a saucepan, combine 1 1/2 cups water, sugar, vinegar, reserved pineapple juice, and orange food coloring. Heat to boiling. Turn off heat. Combine 1/4 cup cornstarch and 1/4 cup water; slowly stir into saucepan. Continue stirring until mixture thickens.
- Combine flour, 2 tablespoons oil, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, salt, white pepper, and egg. Add 1 1/2 cups water gradually to make a thick batter. Stir to blend thoroughly. Add chicken pieces, and stir until chicken is well coated.
- Heat oil in skillet or wok to 360 degrees F (180 degrees C). Fry chicken pieces in hot oil 10 minutes, or until golden. Remove chicken, and drain on paper towels.
- When ready to serve, combine peppers, pineapple, chicken, and sauce. Serve over hot rice.
*I found brown rice vinegar at the local Asian store for cheap and use it whenever I need vinegar for my recipes. I don’t notice a difference.
