Sweet and Sour Chicken

This was one of the very first recipes I ever learned to make. A friend of mine who was in culinary school showed me how to make the sauce because I didn't like any of the recipes I had tried. I've been making it the same way ever since. I've tried other recipes over the years, but I always come back to this one!

I primarily use a cast iron pan or my stainless steel to cook in, but this is one of those instances where a nonstick pan comes in very handy. I use a large ceramic nonstick pan to make this dish so I don't have to add so much oil.


For the Veggies:
1 tsp Grapeseed oil
1 medium sized Onion, very roughly chopped
1 medium sized Red Pepper, very roughly chopped
1 20 oz can Pineapple chunks (liquid from the can set aside)

For the Chicken:
2 TBLSP Grapeseed oil
1.25 lb Chicken breast, cut into bite size
Salt
Pepper
1 cup Cornstarch

For the Sauce:
1/3 cup water

Juice from a 20 oz can of Pineapple
3 TBLSPS Cornstarch
3 TBLSPS White Vinegar
1.5 TBLSPS Soy sauce
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
Pinch of Salt and Pepper

In a large nonstick pan, add the oil and heat over medium-high heat.

Add the onion, pepper and pineapple chunks and cook, stirring frequently until crisp tender. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix the chunks of chicken with a little salt and pepper. Add the cornstarch and toss until all the chicken is coated.

Place the chicken in a large mesh strainer and shake the excess cornstarch off.

In the same pan that you cooked the veggies in, add 2 TBLSPS of oil and the chicken. Cook, tossing every couple minutes until all the chicken is browned and crispy. If your pan isn't big enough to hold one layer of chicken pieces, do this in two batches.

Drain the chicken on a rack.

There may be some oil left in the pan, if there is, blot it with a paper towel held with tongs.

Add the sauce, whisking together so there are no clumps. Cook until thickened.

Add the chicken and the veggies back in to the pan with the sauce and let cook for just a couple minutes more so everything gets warmed through.

Serve with rice and steamed broccoli

4  Servings

Approximately 7 grams unsaturated fat and 1 gram saturated fat per serving