Classic Sesame Chicken
2 min readDon’t let the long ingredient list dissuade you from making this popular restaurant dish. You can also prepare the sauce in advance to cut down on active cooking time.
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
3 whole boneless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
1 ⁄8 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons flour
1 ⁄4 teaspoon baking powder
1 ⁄4 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons water
6 tablespoons cornstarch, divided
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 ⁄2 cup water 1 cup chicken stock or broth
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1 ⁄2 cup vinegar
2 teaspoons chili sauce with garlic 1 large clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
3 ⁄4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
4–6 cups oil for deep-frying
1. Cut the chicken into cubes. Mix in the soy sauce, rice wine, sesame oil, flour, baking powder, baking soda, water, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, and vegetable oil. Marinate the chicken for 30 minutes.
2. In a medium bowl, combine 1 ⁄2 cup water, chicken stock, dark soy sauce, vinegar, chili sauce with garlic, garlic clove, rice vinegar, sugar, and 4 tablespoons cornstarch. Set aside.
3. Heat oil in wok to 350°F. Add the marinated chicken and deep-fry until golden brown. Remove from the wok with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
4. Raise the oil temperature in the wok to 400°F. Deep-fry the chicken a second time, until it turns golden brown. Remove and drain.
5. Give the sauce a quick stir. Bring to a boil in a medium-sized saucepan. Pour over the deep-fried chicken. Garnish with the sesame seeds.
Double Deep-frying
Deep-frying meat twice is another technique Chinese restaurant chefs have in their cooking repertoire. Besides adding a crispier coating, the second frying seals in the meat’s juices. Replacing egg in the batter with vegetable oil helps increase the crispiness.
