Sweet and Sour Chicken

There's really only two things I actually order at Chinese restaurants.

Sweet and sour chicken and fried rice are a must any time I eat Chinese, and they're even better together...which means that I can gobble down even more food – and trust me, when I'm at a Chinese restaurant, I make sure I fill my stomach all the way. There is just no excuse to waste good Chinese food. And if I happen to want something else? Well then I just nibble off of my family's plates. Families are helpful that way.

Since Chinese food is so good, we've eaten at Chinese restaurants in many places we've been.

In New Zealand, we had a small take-out place with a couple of Chinese people cooking the food right in front of you. We would sit outside and wait while the cooks made some "Chick-Fwie-Wie" for us. Then we would carry our little Chinese containers back to the house, trying to imitate their exotic accent.

In Michigan, my favorite is "that one Chinese place with the mints" in Midland...I've never bothered to learn the actual name, everyone knows what I'm talking about anyways, right? At the end of the meal when leaving the restaurant, we would always grab a handful of their strangely delicious colorful mints. Of course, the actual Chinese food tasted great too, but I always remember that restaurant by their little mints.
In Washington, D.C. we visited Chinatown one day. We were walking down one of the streets, looking for a place to eat when we saw a Chinese restaurant's sign advertising lobster – not my cup of tea. I protested in vain. We went in, looked at the menu, and I was pleasantly surprised to find my favorites...and even more surprised when I discovered that they tasted really good. What do you know but the next time (or two) we visited D.C. I made sure that we went to the same restaurant.

On the other hand, here in Moscow we have not found a Chinese restaurant. Even if we did find one, it probably would be on the more expensive side, like all the restaurants here. But whether there are Chinese restaurants here or not, I suffer no longer. I have found a recipe online from a Chinese lady – and the sauce tastes exactly like sweet and sour sauce from a restaurant (except without the fake bright red look to it)!

First, make the marinade...bonus points for finding a bottle of dry white wine with your last name on it!

Then marinade your chicken. Mix it up good so every bite has delicious flavor! (Does anyone else question the actual impact on our tastebuds of those giant pieces of ginger root?)

Make some breadcrumbs...but maybe a little smaller than ours.

And bread the chicken. The use of fingers is acceptable here.

Fry the chicken!

Let the chicken drain – no need for extra oil. A pizza pan with holes in the bottom works great for this.

Taste the sauce lots, while no one is looking...I promise it is amazing!

Don't forget the rice – it's pretty important. And maybe make a salad while you're at it to balance out all that fried chicken...that is, if you can resist the amazing smells long enough to throw some leaves on a plate!

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Serves: 6

Marinade and chicken:

2 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces

1 Tbs. low-sodium soy sauce

2 thin slices unpeeled ginger root

2 Tbs. dry white wine

2 1/4 cups fresh bread crumbs (preferably from stale French bread)*

4 cups canola oil, for frying

Sauce:

2 Tbs. canola oil

2 medium cloves garlic, smashed and minced (scant tablespoon)

2 thin slices peeled ginger root, cut into matchsticks then finely chopped (1 tablespoon)

1/2 medium onion, diced into 1-inch pieces (about 1/2 cup)

1/2 large red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 cups water, plus more for the cornstarch slurry

Half of a 20-ounce can of pineapple slices, cut into bite-size pieces, plus half the juice from the can*

3 to 4 Tbs. ketchup

3/4 to 1 cup sugar

2/3 cup seasoned rice vinegar*

2 Tbs. cornstarch (or more for thicker sauce)

Steamed rice, for serving

Directions:

1. Marinade and chicken: In a bowl or resealable plastic bag, combine the chicken, soy sauce, ginger and white wine; marinate overnight in the refrigerator.

2. Use several layers of paper towels to line a colander for placing fried chicken in.

3. Pour oil into a large sauté pan or wok and heat to 250ºF over medium heat.

4. While oil heats, place the bread crumbs in a wide bowl. Toss 4 or 5 pieces of chicken at a time in the breadcrumbs, coating evenly. Fry for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes until golden brown, crisped, and cooked through. Use a slotted spoon to remove chicken to the paper towel-lined colander. Repeat with remaining chicken.

5. Set aside the remaining marinade (there will not be much). Discard ginger slices.

6. Sauce: In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, heat the oil.

7. Add the garlic and ginger just when it starts to simmer. Fry until just fragrant, stirring a little; do not burn the garlic.

8. Add the onion and red bell pepper. Stir to coat with oil. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes (do not let the onions take on color).

9. Then add the marinade, the 2 cups of water, and the pineapple and its juices.

10. Let the mixture come to a boil before adding 3 Tbs. ketchup, 3/4 cup sugar, and the vinegar. Stir. Taste and add more ketchup or sugar if needed.

11. In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with about 1/2 tablespoon of water to form a slurry. It should be a little pasty, not too liquidy (if there is too much water, it will not make the sauce much thicker. If there is too little water, the sauce will have clumps of cornstarch in it). Pour slowly into the sauce and stir. It should thicken quickly. If you want the sauce thicker, repeat with more cornstarch. If the sauce will not thicken, add some of the sauce's own liquid to the cornstarch instead of extra water.

12. Serve chicken and sauce on top of rice immediately. If you would like to save the extras, keep the chicken and the sauce separate to avoid the chicken becoming soggy.

*We did not have (nor have use for the extras from) a 20-ounce can of pineapple. Instead we used one 8-ounce can of crushed pineapple. We also used 3 Tbs. of ketchup and 3/4 cup of sugar, and the flavors were perfect.

*We did not have seasoned rice vinegar. Instead we used 1/3 cup white vinegar, plus a half of a 1/3 cup and the rest of that 1/3 filled with water.

*The breadcrumbs will be fried, so they do not need to be baked beforehand. Simply put bread (stale bread or end pieces work well for this) in a food processor and pulse until the bread becomes small crumbs, but not too fine.

Recipe from: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/all-we-can-eat/post/the-best-sweet-and-sour-chicken-period/2012/06/13/gJQAZ0ntaV_blog.html