Kinda Chinese Chicken

Had a productive day in a very low-key nerdy way. I washed all my bed linens, and dried them outside on the clothes line. (I think it's against the neighborhood covenants, but just let them put me in jail for drying my laundry on the clothes line. Martha Stewart went to prison so I can do it too.) And I made another version of this recipe and decided to post it. I found it at Mel's Kitchen Cafe and have cooked it a couple of times. I'm very fond of it and love it even more now that I've spiced it up a bit. For me, it's much easier (and much less oil) than stir-frying in a wok. Trust me, it's really good. And when the sauce starts cooking, the vinegary spicy thing makes your eyes water--that's a good sign.

Kinda Chinese Chicken

Chicken:

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1 ½ pounds)
Salt and pepper
1 cup cornstarch
2 large eggs, beaten

¼ cup peanut or vegetable oil

Sauce:

1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup chili sauce

¾ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 scallions, chopped
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
½ cup peanuts

 Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

 Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. While the oil is heating, cut the chicken breasts into 1-inch pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Place the cornstarch in a gallon-sized ziploc bag. Put the chicken into the bag with the cornstarch and seal, tossing to coat the chicken. Whisk the eggs together in a shallow pie plate. Dip the cornstarch-coated chicken pieces in the egg and place them carefully in a single layer in the hot skillet. Cook for 1-2 minutes and then flip each piece over to cook on the other side until nicely golden but not all the way cooked through. Place in a single layer in a baking dish. Make sure the pieces don't overlap.

Mix the sauce ingredients together in a medium bowl and pour over the chicken in the baking dish. Bake for one hour, turning the chicken several times in the last ½ hour to coat evenly with sauce. You want the sauce to be a sticky coating on the chicken, not watery.

 

Serve over hot, steamed rice.

Serves 4 – 6.

Adapted from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe at www.melskitchencafe.com.