Easy Chinese Sweet And Sour Chicken Recipe
By jenubouka
Chinese Sweet and Sour Chicken
How To Prepare Chicken For Chicken Nuggets
First thing is first when preparing sweet and sour chicken. It really begins with how you prepare your chicken pieces or nuggets. This recipe for chicken nuggets is very kid friendly and if you are in the mood for some homemade Chinese sweet and sour chicken but the kids would rather not then here is a chicken nugget recipe that will satisfy the whole family.
Chicken Nugget Recipe: serves 4-6
This chicken nugget recipe can be made in advanced and stored in the freezer for a quick and easy dinner. The secret to moist chicken nuggets is in the brining process, which in this recipe only takes 20 minutes.
Brine:
- 1 1/2 lbs. Chicken breast, cut into equal 1 inch pieces
- 2 cups water
- 1 1/2 Tbs. Salt
- 2 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
In a large bowl whisk the salt, water, and Worcestershire until salt is dissolved. Next add chicken pieces and cover in refer for 20 minutes.
Chicken Breading:
( To crush the panko, place in a zip lock bag and roll bread crumbs with a rolling pin)
- 1 Cup flour
- 1 Cup Panko (Japanese style bread crumbs)
- 2 tsp. onion powder
- 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. white pepper
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
Combine all ingredient in large dish and set aside
Chicken Nuggets Preparation:
Once the chicken nuggets have been in the brine for 20 minutes, remove from brine liquid and pat dry. Next take 5 egg whites and whisk until doubled and very foamy, set aside.
Preheat oven to 200 F.
In dutch oven, large stock pot, or deep fryer, add desired oil equaling 3 inches of depth. If you have a frying thermometer heat oil until it reaches 350 F. If you do not have a thermometer then heat oil over medium high heat, but be sure to test a piece of chicken first.
I like to set up an assembly line with my chicken ingredients:
1.)Dry chicken pieces
2.) Whipped egg whites
3.) Panko breading
A great tip when breading your chicken nuggets is to have a "wet hand" and a "dry hand", do this by using one for the egg whites, and the other for the breading, this will save you time and clean up.
Dip chicken in egg whites, the bread mixture, then on to a baking sheet and allow the breaded chicken nuggets to rest about 10 minutes before frying, don not throw away the bread mixture.
Heat up your frying oil while the nuggets rest.
Before you fry the chicken nuggets give them a final coat of the breading mixture you set aside, this is what gives the crispy exterior and juicy meat. Fry on one side for about 3 minutes and flip and continue frying another 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown, place on a clean baking sheet and place in the oven.
How To Freeze Chicken Nuggets
If you are wanting to double or triple the chicken nugget recipe and freeze for a later use then instead of letting the chicken nuggets rest in the oven you would want to allow them to cool at room temperature and place them in a single layer in the freezer until they are about 50 percent frozen and then you can place in a air tight zip lock freezer bag.
How To Prepare Frozen Chicken Nuggets:
To prepare your homemade frozen chicken nugget for either sweet and sour chicken or chicken nuggets, you can heat up frying oil and deep fry at 350 degrees for about 8 minutes, careful not to burn them, or you can re heat in the oven at 350 F for about 8 to 10 minutes.
Sweet and Sour Key Ingredients
Chinese Chili Sauce
Easy Sweet And Sour Sauce Recipe
When you look for recipes online for sweet and sour sauce many claim to be easy but do they really add the elements of true sweet and sour flavors. I tend to steer clear of sweet and sours recipes that include ketchup, and then adding cornstarch to thicken the sweet and sour sauce, constantly whisking to avoid clumps. No thank you. For one ketchup is for my fries and burger and for two cornstarch will deafen the true flavors of the sauce.
I wanted to create an easy sweet and sour sauce that would enhance the chicken nuggets as well as hold true to the ethnicity of the Chinese dish. What I like best about making this easy recipe is that it is quick and very flavorful and it keeps in the fridge for up to a week maybe longer it never lasts that long at my house.
Easy Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe:
1 cup Apricot jam
1/4 cup white vinegar or rice vinegar
2 Tbs. Chinese chili sauce
1/4 cup pineapple juice
2 Tbs. soy sauce
1 tsp. ginger powder
Pinch of ground cloves
Combine all ingredient in a sauce pan over medium heat and gently bring to a simmer, allow the sauce to gently bubble, stirring frequently, for about 15 minutes.
Allow the mixture to cool before coating the chicken nuggets.
I like to sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds over my sweet and sour chicken it adds a little of an earthy scent to the Chinese dish serve the sweet and sour chicken with steamed white rice or brown rice with crushed pineapple.
Comments
Hmm Delicious. I will give it a try.
I know what I'm having for tea tonight. Thanks.
Ah thanks Arlene, I really love Chinese food but I am so allergic to msg that I have started making my own. So I really hope you enjoy!
Hi Dr. Jez!
Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy!
Thanks for reading Katrinasui
Hope you enjoy
Sounds great. My favorite Chinese food has always been shrimp fried rice with an egg roll.
Oh man that is good too. Gonna have to whip that up when I see some good shrimp in the market.
This recipe sounds great. I love chicken nuggets. I can eat them almost everyday! :)
Hi Jenubouka, i like Chinese food . I love Hot and sour soup and dumplings and ofcourse fried rice. Nice recipe and would try it out one day.
I know what you mean Om, I love chicken nuggets too, I was getting tired of the store brands "mystery" chicken parts. Thanks for reading!
Thanks for reading Indian Chef!
My children love chicken nuggets. I will try this recipe. Thank you.
Hello thumb17,
Thank you for stopping by and I hope the kids like, I know my son prefers home made than the store bought. If fact I tried to slip some by in pinch and he just shook his head, mind you he is three, my little food critic could tell.
Sounds like a winner! Bookmarking this one! Yum!
Thank you for sharing :)
Thanks Missolive!
Enjoy.
Bookmarked immediately, Hi Jen,
This is a great hub on something very dear to my heart. A delicious, Chinese sweet and sour chicken recipe. And easy to prepare.
The brining process is very interesting and I will give it a go next time I knock up a Chinese meal. I have never attempted the egg whites thing before, so it will be nice to do something different, for a change. I didn't know about the freezing method either. Brilliant.
I love it, when I learn something for the first time. Well done and thanks Jen for a great hub, voted up, interesting and useful. Now I am hungry lol.
That was my plan mike:) The egg whites allow the chicken to adhere to the crumbs as well as give them an extra crispy exterior. This is actually a type of tempura batter and works great with shrimp and pork!
I hope you enjoy, I am hungry now for it too.
I love chinese food....
Thank you Aurelio, just remember that restaurant chinese food can be loaded with salt and msg, though I am sure you have been told this :)
Jenubouka Nuggets are my personal favourite though i have never tried to make it but now i would try to make it. very nice and easy recipe. Thanks
I'm going to bookmark this for later. Any idea if this would work with tofu instead of chicken?
Thank you Indian Chef! I hope you approve!
PDX: Yes tofu would work wonderfully. Same procedure applies as far as the coating and frying goes. If this is for a strict vegetarian who does not eat eggs then another method is to coat the tofu in a seasoned cornstarch and allow to site in fridge for an hour then re coating the tofu right before frying.
I love Sweet and Sour Chicken. This recipe looks terr5ific. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for the comment KoffeKlatch Gals!
I hope you give it a try.
Im going to make this for dinner tonight! I havent had chinese food in ages and this looks TOO good to pass up :)
my wife does eat eggs but, like me, they have to be cage free. I eat all manner of organic and cage free meats and wild fish so it's mostly not for me ;-)
Cool! Thanks Ardie, I hope it will deliver a great Chinese fix with out the effects of tainted msg found in Chinese restaurants!
PDX: Yes organic, self sustainable meats and fish are the way to go, I just wish they were a little more accessible in smaller towns and more affordable. When I cook with tofu and want to "fry" it I will use a seasoned cornstarch mixture like above method for the chicken.
great, jen. I'll give it a try! I only buy farm raised and organic meats now
So looking forward to trying this out--thanks!
Thanks for checking it out RTalloni! Hope you enjoy.
Great! I am getting lots of tea time ideas from Hub pages now and they are great to Pin on Pinterest.
Voted up, useful, pinned, socially shared. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much I am glad you enjoyed! Thanks For Sharing!!
This recipe sounds really good! Voted up and useful...wish there were a vote for "yummy"
Hi there Sinea,
I know right? Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoy the recipe.
Definitely bookmarked. Thanks for sharing :)
Hope you do enjoy!! However your chicken dish still reigns in my book!
...well I like that word 'easy' ..... even I think I can pull this one off without having to buy breaded chicken strips or nuggets frozen - thank you for your visit just now and always so great to see and hear from you - been busy with a new group at FB called Let's just talk music or cinema - and you're welcome to join - we are having a lot of fun there - and it would be a honor to have you - my name is Colin Stewart at FB with the same profile photo and on my homepage is the link to click
...sending you warm wishes and good energy from lake erie time 10;45pm
...come to our music group - I am posting something from Boogie Nights right now .......11:43pm lake erie time
Oh thank you Epi! I hope this recipe is a success for you! And thanks for the invite, you had me at boogie nights! I shall see you soon over at FB, it would be an honor!
I really like the ingredients you list for the sweet and sour sauce, that sounds delicious!!! I'll have to try making this. Voted up!
Hi emilybee!
Thanks so much, I do prefer a little twist to my Chinese sweet and sour sauce. I hope you enjoy!
Yummmy ill try it!
Awesome; how you like!
Arlene V. Poma 5 months ago
This is bookmarked and voted up! I have a small collection of recipes that are similar, and I don't need them, now. I can use this one from now on! This recipe is perfect for quick meals and saves me some money since I don't have to leave the house for take-out.