Sweet & Sour Chicken

I have been trying my hand at perfecting an assortment of Asian inspired dishes.

After trying several store bought sauces I decided it would be so much better to make some homemade ones.

Sweet and Sour sauce is one of the sauces I worked on for a while before mastering.

Well I've perfected it and boy is this one delicious!

This would pair perfectly with plain white rice, my Fried Rice or even my P.F. Chang's Copycat Garlic Noodles for a quick weeknight dinner.

If you want to try your hand at Asian cooking this is the perfect recipe to start with. So are any of the other's I mentioned above.

Here's what you need:

1-1/4 - 1-1/2 pounds of boneless chicken breasts, cubed into 1 inch pieces
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1/2 - 1 whole red bell pepper, cubed into 1 inch pieces
1/2 - 1 whole yellow onion, cubed into 1 inch pieces
1 - 2 carrots, sliced (optional)
Canola or vegetable oil for frying

Sauce
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 Tbs. light soy sauce
1 tsp. granulated garlic
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
6 Tbs. ketchup

Cube all the chicken, bell pepper, and onions and set aside.

Make the sauce by placing all the ingredients into a saucepan and stir to incorporate.

 

Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.  Set aside.

 

Place the cornstarch and pepper in a zip top bag.  Zip closed and shake to mix.

 

Place the chicken in the cornstarch mixture and zip closed.  Shake until all the chicken is coated.

Heat about 3 Tablespoons of oil in a large skillet or wok on the stove over medium high heat.  Place the vegetables in the pan and cook for 5-7 minutes until almost tender.

Remove from pan to a plate and add enough oil to make a thin coating on the bottom of the pan. Add half the chicken in an even layer and don't overcrowd the pan or the chicken will steam instead of frying.

When the chicken has cooked 4-5 minutes and is nice and brown flip and cook the other side until done, about another 4 - 5 minutes.

Remove to a plate and wipe out the pan.  Start over with the oil and cook the rest of the chicken.

When the second batch is done, remove it to a plate and wipe the pan out.  Return the pan to the stove top and add the chicken and vegetables.

 

Pour the sauce over all the chicken and stir until completely coated.

Simmer on low for a couple of minutes then serve.

Delicious!  This was great with my P.F. Chang's Copycat Garlic Noodles

Enjoy!

Serves 4-6 depending on what else you're serving

Here's the handy printable - Sweet & Sour Chicken