Better Than Takeout: Sweet and Sour Chicken

This sweet and sour chicken recipe takes a little bit to make, but it’s so worth it!  Better than takeout!

Chinese food rocks.  Now, we’re from Northern NJ originally and I think there were three places I could walk to from our old house.  But now, living in rural Vermont, our choices are limited.  There are only two places local, and by local I mean a 30-minute drive (minimum).  You can imagine the struggle.

So when the hubby wants Chinese, this is my go-to recipe.  It takes a little work, I won’t lie.  Once the chicken is coated, you brown it in oil, then into the oven for an hour.  The chicken and sauce need to be mixed a few times as well.

The sauce is a simple five ingredients — ingredients most have on hand.  If you don’t have apple cider vinegar, white vinegar will work — I just prefer the taste of the acv.  Otherwise, it’s pretty straight-forward.

Don’t be tempted to just fry and coat with the sauce.  The hour baking makes a difference!  It gives the sauce a chance to glaze the chicken pieces, and really enhances the flavor of the sauce.

Serve with a side of steamed rice (jasmine is our fav!) and steamed broccoli.  Y. U. M.

Enjoy!

Better Than Takeout: Sweet and Sour Chicken

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Ingredients

  

• 2 lbs boneless chicken breasts 3-4, depending on size
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 3 eggs beaten
• 1/4 cup canola oil olive or vegetable would work as well
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 325˚F.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together sauce ingredients: 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar, 1/4 Tbsp ketchup, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 3/4 cup sugar and 1 tsp garlic powder. Set aside.
• Rinse chicken breasts and cut into 1-inch pieces. Season with salt and pepper.
• Place 1 cup cornstarch into a gallon-sized zipper-top bag, add chicken and toss to coat. Make sure each piece is coated thoroughly.
• Heat 1/4 cup oil in a large, heavy bottom pot. (I use my Dutch oven so the oil splatter doesn't get everywhere.)
• In a shallow bowl, whisk 3 eggs. Remove the cornstarch-dredged chicken pieces from the bag and dip into the beaten egg, coating both sides. Place chicken in the very hot oil. (Be careful!)
• Cook chicken in batches in the hot oil for about 30 seconds per side, or until they are browned. The chicken will not be cooked through, but just browned on the outside. As you finish, transfer the chicken pieces to a 9x13 baking dish. You may need additional oil as you go, so add as necessary -- just make sure you give the new oil time to get up to temp before you add more chicken.
• When all of your chicken is in the baking dish, pour the sauce over the chicken pieces and toss to coat. Bake uncovered at 325˚F for 1 hour, tossing the chicken every twenty minutes to coat with sauce. Allow to sit for 5 minutes when removed from the oven to slightly cool (it will be piping hot when it comes out!).