Sweet and Sour Chicken
This recipe for Sweet and Sour Chicken almost captures my mood. It is bright, sweet, with just some notes of sour. Isn’t that sometimes life. Well, since I nailed the perfect air fried chicken bites, this is how I put them to good use. Sweet and sour chicken is such a classic. Like most Chinese recipes it can be adapted to suit your taste. I like it fruity spiked with a little heat and finished with cilantro. A little shy of calling it a kick. This is one of my son Aadi’s favorite Chinese recipes. A perfect dish to start out our weekend.
My Sweet and Sour Chicken Story
The weekend overall, feels strange. Groups of other parents, all talking college. Some excited, others undecided. It is exciting and a little scary to see the face of promise. My boy turned a year older. Being the other resident foodie in our house, there was a lot of food to be had. Despite all the vaccines rolling out things are far from normal. And, once again things in India are taking a bad and scary turn. What if the pandemic just does not work itself out of the world? It just shows us the crazy interconnected nature of the world.
The next few weeks are predictably busy. However, I seem to have a handle on the projects. The one skill that I hopefully will not lose any time soon.
So, a few things on this dish, I use a combination of frozen pineapple and pineapple juice. If you wish, you can use canned pineapple and the reserved juice. I use very little cornstarch for the sauce, so it is nice and light. I personally love this with my tested and tried coconut and ginger rice.
In fact, with a little planning you can pull this lovely meal in about 45 minutes, prep and all. A maximum of an hour. Cheaper and healthier than take out. So, there you have it a perfect and easy recipe for Sweet and Sour Chicken to get your week started. Some nuances to my recipe, are the addition of a good pop of ginger and sesame seed finish.
I love meshing the sweet, sour and spicy flavors, so here is a sweet and sour chicken wing recipe and a sweet and sour pork chop recipe.
A beautiful and lively take on Sweet and Sour Chicken that is quick, festive, and flavorful.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup pineapple juice
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sriracha or to taste
- 1/3 cup hot water
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 and 1/2 tablespoon oil
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 1 red bell pepper cubed
- 1 yellow bell pepper cubed
- 1/2 cup cubed pineapple pieces
- 1 recipe Crispy Chicken Cubes
Instructions
- Mix the pineapple juice, ketchup, soy sauce, and sriracha in a bowl. Mix in the hot water and cornstarch separately and then turn into the bowl.
- Heat the oil and add in the the ginger and stir lightly. Add in the red and yellow bell pepper and cook for about 4 minutes. Add in the pineapple cubes and the pineapple juice mixture. Allow the mixture to come to a simmer.
- Add in the chicken cubes and cook for about 2 minutes.
- Serve over rice garnished with scallions, cilantro, and sesame seeds.
Ginger Jasmine Coconut Rice (Instant Pot) - Spice Chronicles
[…] is perfect with my sesame chicken or sweet and sour chicken just to name a few […]