Fantastic Foodie Fridays~Sweet & Sour Chicken

If you cook the chicken over high heat quickly it will give the chicken a nicely browned look, and taste without needing to deep fry it.  Use fresh orange juice in the sauce and lots of vegetables to keep the dish and the nutrition balanced.  This is a little different from some of the Sweet & Sour recipes that use ketchup. I have already made this twice. My suggestion is to double the sauce, reduce the amount of honey, add a little bit more of the spicy.  I also added more chicken than was called for and rolled it in cornstarch.  I removed the peppers because of my food allergy but added broccoli, baby corn and water chestnuts.  I placed it all over brown rice and it was amazing! 

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon chili-garlic sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
• 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 4 teaspoons peanut oil
• 12 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1-inch pieces
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pint small, sweet mixed peppers, quartered, or 2 mixed bell peppers, cut into 1-inch strips
• 6 scallions, whites cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces, greens cut into 1-inch pieces and thinly sliced vertically into thin strips
• 8 ounces snow peas, trimmed
• Serving suggestion, cooked brown rice
• Chopped Cashews for sprinkling, optional

In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, chili-garlic sauce, vinegar, soy sauce, orange juice and cornstarch; set aside.

Meanwhile, coat the chicken with 2 teaspoons oil and heat large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Season the chicken to taste with salt and pepper and cook, turning occasionally with a wooden spoon, 2 minutes. Transfer the partially-cooked chicken to a plate. Reserve the pan.

Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons oil in the pan; add the peppers, scallion whites, and snow peas. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Stir in the reserved chicken; whisk the sauce again and add it to the pan. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened and the chicken is tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve over rice and sprinkle with the scallion greens and peanuts, if using.

Nutritional analysis per serving (does not include brown rice and chopped peanuts) Calories 238; Total Fat 6g (Sat Fat 1 g, Mono Fat 2g, Poly Fat 2g) ; Protein 23g; Carb 23g; Fiber 4g; Cholesterol 49mg; Sodium 329mg