I love Chinese food! Do you? There was a time I didn’t think I did. But I found out I was wrong. Where I live there are no close Chinese restaurants. So in desperation, as my favorite was sweet and sour chicken, I decided to try to make it at home. After many attempts, I finally came up with this easy sweet and sour chicken recipe A.winner in my family’s eyes. But they call it Chinese chicken.
The Story
A close friend had made several attempts to try to get me to eat Chinese food. I would tell her that I didn’t like it. When she finally found out that I had never even tried it, she became insistent that I at least try it before passing judgment.
I came to the realization that I was acting like my children. I have always told them to at least try something before deciding whether they liked it or not. So I decided to “man” up and take the plunge. But my first experience was not pleasant.
My friend and I had gone shopping in a town that was a 2-hour drive from home. She decided to take me to a Chinese restaurant that she had gone to many years ago. Well, let me tell you that restaurant had changed since she had been there. When we received our egg rolls I was horrified to find a roach on my plate. A dead roach. At least it wasn’t alive and moving. But a bug on your plate dead or alive is a big turnoff.
My first experience eating Chinese food was a big bust. But I did try it again and boy was I glad. I love it now.
Not My Husband’s Favorite Food
My husband doesn’t care for Chinese food but he will eat the sweet n sour chicken. In fact, he would rather eat my easy sweet and sour chicken recipe that I make at home. But being the nice guy that he is, he will indulge me when I want to eat Chinese out. What a guy! He’s really just a meat and potatoes kind of man. But his favorite meal is gravy and biscuits.
Ingredients for Easy Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe
- 1 1/2 – 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 egg beaten
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 12 oz can of beer or 1 1/2 cups water*
- 1 1/2 to 2 pounds chicken breast cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 1/2 to 2 cups sour milk
Directions for Easy Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe
Sour the milk by adding 1 tablespoon vinegar for every 1 cup of milk. Stir and let sit for about 10 minutes. Place chicken pieces into a large storage bag and pour the sour milk over the chicken. Secure the bag and place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.
To make the batter, in a large bowl add the dry ingredients and stir with a whisk. Add the egg and beer. Mix well.
Drain the milk from the bag of chicken and rinse. Dry chicken and add to the bowl of batter.
Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet. I usually fill the skillet about half full. You can also deep fry the chicken but I use a skillet because it is just easier for me than dragging out my deep fryer.
Fry chicken until golden brown and then turn and brown the other side. It usually takes about 10 minutes on each side depending on how hot your oil is.
Sometimes the little burgers don’t want to turn but I just hold them babies down until golden brown. Place fried chicken onto a plate covered with paper towels. Serve with your favorite sweet and sour sauce. My favorite is by La Choy. Sadly it is not available any longer.
In the past, I liked fried rice but now I prefer just plain white rice. My husband doesn’t like rice, so I will fix him french fries. There are many things he will eat that he doesn’t care for but the two things he will absolutely not eat is rice and stovetop stuffing. He will eat homemade dressing but intensely dislikes stovetop stuffing. Go figure!
I find that soaking the chicken in sour milk makes for a more moist and tender chicken.
* You can use water instead of the beer but the beer gives it a better taste. I don’t like beer but honestly, you can’t taste it.
And There You Have it
I am by no means a master chef. I am just a home cook that enjoys trying new recipes and attempting to reinvent old ones. I love bringing smiles around the dinner table. I like simple and easy.
Looks yummy, doesn’t it? Oh by the way I like the sweet and sour sauce on my rice too!
Give this easy sweet and sour chicken recipe a try and please leave a comment.
Have A Wonderful Day!
