Homemade Sweet and Sour Chicken
Jump to RecipeWhat’s For Dinner?
For those of you with children, you probably get asked that question daily. Sometimes, multiple times. If you’re like me, most nights I don’t have an answer until I start cooking. I buy ingredients for a week’s worth of meals, but then fly by the seat of my pants which one is on the menu for any given day. I pick through my list until I find one that sounds the most appetizing.
Tonight, there was no searching through lists. I already knew what I wanted…I was craving Chinese! In true Messy Masterpiece fashion, I decided to enact my mad scientist skills, take elements from several of my favorite recipes, add in my own flare, and create my hybrid! Mwhahahahah!
The result was a HIT! Follow along to learn how to make my Paleo version of sweet and sour chicken.
Homemade Sweet and Sour Chicken
Course: MainCuisine: ChineseDifficulty: Medium4
servings30
minutes40
minutesIngredients
2-2.5lbs boneless chicken breasts, diced
2 eggs
2/3 arrowroot starch, plus 3 tbsp
2 tbsp water, plus 1/3 cup
1/3 cup rice vinegar
1/3 cup ketchup (I use the brand sweetened with honey)
2/3 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup coco aminos
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 chopped bell pepper
2-3 green onions
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
- Chop the chicken breasts into small, bite size pieces. Coat with 1 tbsp of arrowroot starch. Season with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
- Whisk together the two eggs, 2/3 cup arrowroot starch, and 2 tbsp of water to make a batter. Mix well until all the clumps are gone. Set aside.
- Preheat skillet, or wok, with enough oil to coat the bottom, 1/4in deep or so.
- While the skillet is preheating, make the sweet and sour sauce. Mix together the vinegar, ketchup, pineapple juice, aminos, and garlic in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
- When the skillet, or wok, is hot enough to fry, dip small batches of diced chicken into the egg batter and then straight into the hot oil. There should be enough diced chicken to split the frying into two batches. When they pieces are golden brown on both sides, and cooked through, lay them onto paper towel lined plates.
- When both batches are out of the pan, carefully pour the frying oil into a container to cool for disposal. Throw your chopped peppers and onions in the same skillet to sauté until tender and fragrant.
- While the veggies cook, mix the remaining 1/3 cup of water with the remailing 2 tbsp of arrowroot starch in a small cup until dissolved. Remove the sweet and sour sauce from the heat and add in the starch water mixture. Whisk until well incorporated and thick.
- For plating, there are two options. You can toss the chicken, veggies, and sauce together in the skillet for a combined dish. Or, if you’d prefer, you can leave the ingredients separate so each person can customize their own plate.
- Serve over rice, cauliflower rice, or broccoli and top with diced green onion for garnish.
Visual Step by Step Guide
Step 1
Dice your chicken breast into bite sized pieces. Coat with 1 tbsp of arrowroot starch. Salt and pepper to taste and then set aside.
Step 2
Whisk together the egg, 2/3 cup arrowroot starch, 2 tbsp of water, and salt and pepper to taste to make the batter. Set aside. I use anywhere from 1/4-1/2 tsp salt and pepper to make the breading extra flavorful.
Step 3
Preheat skillet, or wok, with enough oil to coat the bottom 1/4in or so. Enough to fry the chicken but not too deep. No need to waste the oil!
Step 4
While the skillet is preheating, make the sweet and sour sauce. Mix together the vinegar, ketchup, pineapple juice, aminos, and garlic in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
Step 5
When the skillet, or wok, is hot enough to fry, dip small batches of diced chicken into the egg batter and then straight into the hot oil. There should be enough diced chicken to split the frying into two batches. When they pieces are golden brown on both sides, and cooked through, lay them onto paper towel lined plates. If you like it extra crispy, flip them a second time to re-crisp the first side before removing from the pan.
Step 6
When both batches are out of the pan, carefully pour the frying oil into a container to cool for disposal. Throw your chopped peppers and onions in the same skillet to sauté until tender and fragrant.
Step 7
While the veggies cook, mix the remaining 1/3 cup of water with the remailing 2 tbsp of arrowroot starch in a small cup until dissolved. Remove the sweet and sour sauce from the heat and add in the starch water mixture. Whisk until well incorporated and thick.
Step 8
For plating, there are two options. You can toss the chicken, veggies, and sauce together in the skillet for a combined dish. Or, if you’d prefer, you can leave the ingredients separate so each person can customize their own plate.
Step 9
Serve over rice, cauliflower rice, or broccoli and top with diced green onion for garnish.
The breading was a recipe from Wicked Spatula and the sweet and sour sauce was from Whole Kitchen Sink. I tweaked the amounts and added in the veggies to make it my own. Enjoy friends!
2 responses to “Homemade Sweet and Sour Chicken”
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