Evergreen's Sesame Chicken

Redneck Epicurean's Note:

This is yet another installment in the Evergreen recipe saga. This one came from the son. After going there so much, I didn't even need to wait to be seated; I walked in and they knew I wanted chopsticks (not everyone can use them, you know), ice water, and the buffet. Someone said they really like the sauce over rice-I think this one has plenty. It also freezes/reheats nicely for you OMAC people! NOTE: someone docked me a star (I think) because I didn't mention reduced sodium stuff. If you want, exchange whatever you can for low-sodium. ALSO: this goes really fast if you assemble everything on your counter BEFORE you do this because after you start, it literally is a matter of a few minutes.

• Total Time: 50 mins
• Prep Time: 35 mins
• Cook Time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

• 3 medium chicken breasts

MARINADE

• 3 -5 drops sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 ½ teaspoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon oil

SAUCE

• ½ cup water
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons white vinegar
• ¼ cup cornstarch
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds , toasted

Directions:

1. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces, the smaller, the faster this cooks. Mix the marinade ingredients in a zip-top bag and toss in the refrigerator while you assemble everything else. (You don't have to marinate this recipe for two weeks -- no need!).
2. Deep fry the chicken pieces in hot oil and drain on a paper towel.
3. Keep the meat warm.
4. Pour all the ingredients in the skillet and cook until the thickness you desire. I aim for the consistency of giblet gravy.
5. Return the meat to the skillet and turn the heat to low; leave on the stove until meat is hot.
6. Serve garnished with the toasted sesame seeds.

Reviews

[Chef #1238220]

Fine recipe. I used 1/2 cup sugar after reading the reviews and thought it worked well. Might try it with some red pepper next time to get a little kick. Perhaps there is a difference across the country in the type of sesame chicken available at Chinese restaurants, but this did not come out even remotely like the sesame chicken we get around here. The recipe is good, but it was not restaurant or take-out quality as suggested.

[Glorfindel]

I imagine this would be a delicious recipe it it wasn't for the sweetness. I found this too, cheek suckingly sweet. I'm tempted to make it again and quarter the sugar. While tasting it during cooking and tasting the sweetness, I added worcestershire sauce and a little malt vinegar to help stave off the sweet and it added a nice savoury aspect to the dish :).

[Bobbles]

I can't eat wheat and can't seem to find a chicken broth without it in this country, so for the sauce I had to use water instead (1 cup instead of 1.5 water + broth). I added some pepper and chili paste and reduced the sugar to about half a cup. It still came out pretty good! I've been craving some good, American-style Chinese food for a while and this hit the spot. I hope next time I can make it with the proper ingredients.