Marinade & Sauce:
1½ C water
½ C hoisin sauce
¼ C white vinegar
3 TBS soy sauce
3 TBS sugar
2 TBS cornstarch
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (~1½ pounds) (cut into 1-inch pieces)
1 TBS vegetable oil
4 garlic cloves (minced)
2 TBS grated fresh ginger
½ TSP crushed red pepper flakes
Batter & Frying:
3 egg whites
1½ C cornstarch
½ C all-purpose flour
½ TSP baking soda
1 TSP salt
4 C vegetable oil
Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes – Cook Time: ~10 minutes
To make the marinade, whisk the hoisin sauce, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch, and water in a bowl. Of this mixture, place 6 TBS into a ziplock bag and add the chicken. Seal and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Set aside the remaining marinade in the bowl.
While the chicken is chilling in the marinade, heat the 1 TBS of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Sauté the garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes until fragrant. Add 2 C of the marinade to the skillet and simmer, whisking constantly, until the mixture is dark brown and thickened. Remove from heat, cover and keep the sauce warm.
To prepare the chicken for coating and frying, whisk the egg whites in a shallow dish until foamy, set aside. Combine the cornstarch, flour, salt and baking soda in a ziplock bag and combine well. Drizzle the remaining marinade mix in, seal the bag, and rub into the dry components until it is fully combined and resembles coarse meal.
Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and from the marinade. Pat the marinated chicken dry with paper towels. Toss half the chicken into the foamy egg whites until well coated, then dredge the chicken in the cornstarch mixture, shaking the bag to coat thoroughly. Transfer the coated chicken to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken.
Heat the oil to 350° in a 5 QT dutch oven over high heat. Fry the chicken in thirds until golden brown, ~3½ minutes. Transfer the cooked chicken onto a rack to drain. Return the oil to 350 degrees before frying again. Repeat with the remaining chicken.
Warm the sauce over medium heat until simmering. Turn off the heat and add the fried chicken pieces. Toss to coat and serve.
If so desired, garnish with 1 – 2 green onions, thinly sliced.
Yield: 4 servings