Thursday Recipe - Sweet and Sour Chicken

My daughter loves Chinese food, and most of it is fine for her. But the breaded dishes aren't and those are what we love the most. So when I ran across this recipe, I had to adapt it to my cooking style and tastes and try it out. It was delicious. It takes a bit of work, but the end result is good.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

1/2 c. sliced onion
1/2 c. sliced red bell pepper
1/2 c. sliced green bell pepper
2 c. sliced carrots
1 c. pineapple chunks
1/4 c. oil
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken, cut into bite-size chunks
1/3 c. garbanzo bean flour
1/3 c. cornstarch
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. ketchup
3/4 c. red wine vinegar or rice wine vinegar
1 T. soy sauce
1 t. garlic powder
1 t. ginger

Grease a 9x13 baking pan. Spread onion, peppers, carrots, and pineapple in the bottom. Set aside. Heat oven to 350° F.

Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat.

Put chicken, garbanzo bean flour, cornstarch, salt, and pepper in a large plastic bag. A gallon-size one works great. Shake well until the chicken is evenly coated. Pour in the egg. Shake it around until the egg is evenly distributed. I found this works best with partially frozen chicken.

Drop about 1/3 to 1/2 the chicken into the frying pan. Use tongs to separate the pieces. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until it starts to brown. Flip the pieces over and cook another 3-4 minutes. You don't need it cooked all the way through, just browned and the coating set. Move the chicken to the baking dish when it is browned. Repeat with the rest of the chicken.

In a small mixing bowl, combine the sugar, ketchup, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger. Stir well. Pour over the chicken and vegetable mixture.

Bake uncovered at 350°F for 30 minutes. Serve over hot rice. Garnish with chopped green onions if you want.