Italian
Sweet and Sour Chicken
by Chef Andrea Larossa · 62K subscribers on YouTube
A classic Chinese-style sweet and sour chicken with a crispy double-fried batter and a glossy, tangy sauce. Chef Andrea Larossa reinterprets this takeaway favourite with an Italian touch, using strawberry jam, Worcestershire sauce, and a perfectly balanced sweet-and-sour flavour.
- Difficulty
- medium
Ingredients
21 items- Chicken Breastcut into bite-sized cubes
- Red Bell Pepperdiced, added at the end
- Green Bell Pepperdiced, added at the end
- Spring Onionlarge pieces for sauce, later removed; green part used for garnish
- Flourfor batter; proportion 3 parts flour to 1 part cornstarch
- Corn Starchfor batter and for thickening sauce; can substitute with potato starch or kuzu
- Yeastbaking powder for batter; quantity approximate
- Baking Sodabaking soda for batter; helps crispness
- Vinegarused in batter, marinade, and sauce; e.g., white wine vinegar
- 1 pcsEggfor batter
- Wateras needed for batter and sauce
- Cane Sugarused in marinade and sauce; can substitute with white sugar
- Saltto taste
- 1 tbspTomato Pastetomato paste
- Strawberry Jamstrawberry jam; about 1.5–2 tbsp
- Chili Pepper(optional) — fresh or dried chilli, to taste
- Worcestershire SauceWorcestershire sauce
- Seed Oilseed oil for frying; high-oleic sunflower oil preferred
- Kudzukudzu starch for thickening sauce; can substitute with cornstarch or potato starch
- Black Sesame Seeds(optional) — black sesame seeds for garnish
- Green Spring Onion(optional) — green part of spring onion, sliced, for garnish
Method
- Prepare the batter: mix flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and baking soda. Add vinegar, egg, and water, whisking until smooth. Let the batter rest.
- Marinate the chicken: cut the chicken breast into bite-sized cubes. Toss with a little brown sugar, salt, and vinegar. Set aside to marinate.
- Make the sauce: in a saucepan, heat a little seed oil. Add the spring onion in large pieces and cook gently. Add tomato paste, water, sugar, vinegar, chilli (optional), Worcestershire sauce, and strawberry jam. Simmer until the sauce thickens slightly. Remove the spring onion pieces. Thicken further with a slurry of kuzu (or cornstarch) and water, if needed.
- First fry: heat oil to 140°C (284°F). Dip the marinated chicken pieces into the batter, allowing excess to drip off. Fry in batches until pale golden. Remove and drain.
- Second fry: increase the oil temperature to 180°C (356°F). Fry the chicken again until deep golden and very crispy. Drain on paper towels.
- Combine: add diced red and green bell pepper to the prepared sauce and bring to a simmer. Add the fried chicken and toss quickly to coat evenly.
- Serve: transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with sliced spring onion greens and black sesame seeds. Serve immediately.
Chef Andrea Larossa
Professional chef62K subscribers on YouTube7.1M total channel viewsLa cucina deve essere Semplice,Efficace di Gusto!
