I know we keep promising an actual meal around here and then keep getting sidetracked with fun Halloween stuff so I’m finally going to give you something dinner-worthy! (Not that doughnuts or cookies aren’t dinner-worthy, because they totally are.) I actually do have another dessert to share and I let all of you Facebook fans vote what would go up today. I’ll be honest, I stopped counting half way through (I didn’t know that many people would pipe in!) and when I tallied up the votes dinner won by ONE vote over dessert. It was seriously that close! But no fear; the dessert is coming next week 🙂 This is actually a little variation from one of the recipes I contributed to the Good Bite Weeknight Meals: Delicious Made Easy. It’s one of my go-to meals when I need something warm and filling without a lot of fuss. I love it because it’s a basic sweet and sour sauce (for which I almost always have the ingredients for) and you can really throw any vegetables in there that you happen to have around and you’ve got a better-than-takeout meal in under 30 minutes. Much healthier than take-out too!
Somehow I forgot to take photos of the sauce preparation, but it’s super easy. you’ll just combine a little cornstarch and cold water and stir those together and then add some other yummy stuff like soy sauce, pineapple juice, ketchup, brown sugar, etc. So pretend you’re looking at that right now. Are you visualizing? Take your time…okay good.
Now, start by sauteing some boneless, skinless chicken breast with some fresh garlic and ginger in a large skillet or wok. You could also use pork tenderloin, or chicken thighs. I’m going to give you a little hint about pans too. I’m using a stainless steel pan here because it’s easier to photograph than my black nonstick ones. If you use a stainless steel pan, you may have to add a little extra oil to make sure the garlic and ginger don’t burn. In a nonstick pan I never have that problem because there’s naturally a little extra moisture.
You’ll also notice when the chicken finishes cooking, you’ve got lots of brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. These are great; this is what you’re looking for when you make pan sauces, but in this case, if we continue with the recipe and cook the veggies, those brown bits will turn to black bits and that’s no good. So remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
And now we’ll take advantage of all that flavor and de-glaze the pan! I’m using the juice from my can of pineapple to simmer the browned bits right off and add flavor to the sauce. If you’re using a non-stick pan then you can completely skip this step. The pineapple juice will just get mixed in a separate bowl with your sauce.
Once the pan is de-glazed, just pour the pineapple juice into the bowl where you started the sauce.
To your clean pan, add a drizzle of oil and some veggies. I’m using onion, broccoli, and red bell pepper, but really you can be fairly creative here and clean out the fridge.
Just cook those for a few minutes until they are crisp-tender.
Then you can add your cooked chicken back in, and also your pineapple.
Then you’ll pour the sauce in
and just let it come to a simmer for a couple of minutes to thicken.
Serve it over brown or white rice. And if you want, you can sprinkle it with sesame seeds and something green.
Sweet and Sour Chicken Stir-Fry
Ingredients
Sweet and Sour Sauce
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ¼ cup cold water
- reserved juices from 8 ounce can of pineapple pineapple pieces get added later
- 3 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
Stir Fry
- 1 8 ounce can pineapple chunks
- 3-4 teaspoons vegetable oil divided
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs diced into 1 inch pieces (you could also use pork tenderloin, or sliced boneless pork chops)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
- 3 cups broccoli florets
- 1 medium bell pepper stemmed , seeded, and cut into ½ inch squares (I used half of the bell pepper, and added ½ of a diced onion as well)
- hot cooked white or brown rice 1½ cups white rice cooked in 3 cups water should feed 4
Instructions
- Start cooking your rice so it will be ready.
- Combine cornstarch and water in a medium sized bowl and stir to dissolve. Add the reserved pineapple juice, ketchup, soy sauce, brown sugar, and vinegar to the bowl and stir to combine.
- Heat 2-3 teaspoons of the oil in a wok or large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, salt, pepper, garlic, and ginger. Stir-fry until the chicken is cooked and no longer pink, 3-4 minutes. Remove chicken from pan and cover to keep warm.
- Add the remaining 1-2 teaspoons oil to the pan and add the broccoli and bell pepper. Stir-fry over medium-high heat until the vegetables are crisp-tender and the broccoli is bright green, 3-5 minutes.
- Return the chicken to the pan and add the pineapple chunks and sauce mixture. Bring to a simmer and cook until everything is heated through and the sauce has thickened, 1-2 minutes. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve over the hot cooked rice. If desired, top with sesame seeds and chopped fresh cilantro or parsley.
- Serves 4 (or more like 6 if you’ve got some kiddos in the mix.)
Questions & Reviews
Thank you, thank you, thank you for posting a dinner recipe! I’ve been waiting!
Oh My Goodness! I love sweet and sour and this looks so delicious! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
We were just trying to figure out what we should do with the pork chops that I found on sale….this is perfect. We love stir fry and pineapple, it’s quick, easy and nutritious. Thanks for the post!
I love stir fry. Marked in my *to be made* file. Oh, today I am going to my son’s school to make those cute Oreo bats with his class. Huzzah!! Mother of the Year award. Thanks for all your great ideas!
I knew pumpkin would get edged out. I voted for pumpkin, but I’m not disappointed after reading this. Looks like I don’t have to figure out what is for dinner tonight.
This Sweet and Sour Chicken is delicious and amazing! You have great hair and adorable children. And you are super hot and crazy intelligent! I look forward to more chinese flavors! Waiting for one my hubby might actually eat (he’s weird and believes that fruit and their juices have no place in sauces). Perhaps you have a Bourbon Chicken Recipe laying around…I can’t seem to duplicate it very well.
Is using jarred ginger ok? ( I know fresh is better) I don’t use ginger all that often..don’t want to waste.
Yes, jarred is just fine! I usually keep a jar in my fridge for “emergency” use, lol. But also, you can freeze fresh ginger. It’s actually easier to work with when frozen. Just peel the whole thing and wrap it up in a ziplock bag in the freezer. Then when you need some, just grate it with a cheese grater. It’s kind of like ginger snow- works great!
This looks fabulous and I am not usually a fan of sweet and sour chicken but my wonderful husband is. I am ready to take it on and make it this weekend for us. Thanks for a great idea.
This looks amazing!! My weirdo husband doesn’t like pineapple so I will save that for me to snack on later (will still use the juice though). I have a bag of frozen diced chicken in my freezer that’s just dying to be used in this. Hopefully I’ll get to make it next week 😀
my ex felt the same way (weirdo), but I still added it and then removed and put it aside for me, pretending it never made it into the mix. He never noticed!
One of my fav dishes!