This recipe for sweet and sour chicken is a visually exciting dish with all the different colours of pepper. I’ve used thighs as they are the tastiest part of the chicken.
Please feel free to substitute chicken breast, pork or even king prawns to mix this up.
I’d also suggest it might be good with a dab of chilli heat in the sauce as well. I’m a chilli-wuss though, so I’ve not tried that yet.
As this is a stir fry, slicing all the ingredients to similar thicknesses really helps things to cook evenly.
Ingredients
- 8 large chicken thighs, no skin and deboned (about 800g of meat)
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 1/2 green bell pepper
- 1/2 yellow bell pepper
- 1/2 large chopped onion
- 225g can of sliced water chestnuts, drained
- 250ml water
- 2 tablespoons equivalent (or to taste) Cookable Sweetener, such as Stevia or Splenda
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar (or white wine vinegar)
- 2 tablespoons tomato puree
- a knob of butter
- light olive oil for frying – or your neutral tasting fat of choice
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic — to taste
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger — to taste
- Salt and pepper — to taste
- A sprinkle of xanthan gum to thicken, optional
- A handful of beansprouts to serve, optional
Method
Serving Size: 4
Preparation Time: 0:30
Cut thighs into stir fry sized strips.
Prep and chop the peppers
Remove all seeds , centre core and membrane. Cut peppers in half and give them a quick push on a hard surface with the heel of your hand to flatten them. Slice lengthways about 2″ 50mm wide. Then cut them into strips at a 45 degree angle.
Chop onions and combine with peppers in a bowl. Add the water chestnuts and mix well.
Mix water, tomato puree, sweetener and vinegar in a small bowl to make the sweet and sour sauce. Whisk well until combined and sweetener has dissolved.
(Adjust sweetness or tartness to taste)
Place a knob of butter and some oil in a wok.
Sauté chicken in small batches until just browned.
Remove to a plate and keep warm.
Using the same pan add a little more oil if needed and sauté mixed vegetables until they just start to soften – cook to your crunch preference.
Add the garlic and ginger to the pan, sauté for 15-30 seconds to release the aromas then add the sauce. Cook for only long enough to bring the sauce to hot.
Add chicken and any collected juices back into the wok and stir until the chicken is done, around 5-7 minutes.
If you want a thicker sauce sprinkle in some xanthan gum very carefully.
Add some beansprouts to the pan just a few moments before serving.