PREPARE; Sweet And Sour Fried Chicken With Mashed Potatoes

Koreans know and enjoy their fried chicken.

Including the three major "S's" of taste in all my dishes: sweet, sour and savory. This crispy chicken has them all.

For a thicker mash, add cold butter into the hot mash off the heat and keep stirring until the cold butter is fully emulsified with the mash.

Instead of cornstarch, you can use potato starch or rice starch.

Ingredients

- Mashed Potatoes

- 10 cups salted water

- 2 russet potatoes

- 1/2 cup milk, warmed

- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed

- Salt, to taste

- Ground white pepper, to taste

CHICKEN

- Vegetable oil, frying oil

- 1 cup cornstarch

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

- 2 teaspoon finely minced ginger

- 2 pounds chicken wings, legs and thighs

SWEET AND SOUR SAUCE

- 2-3 tablespoons gochujang (Korean chili paste)

- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

- 1/4 cup honey

- 2 tablespoons soy sauce

- 2 tablespoons minced garlic

- 3 dried red chile peppers, seeds only

GARNISH

- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

- 1 teaspoon chopped green onion

Preparation

For the mashed potatoes:

1. Place twater in a large pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Add the potatoes to the pot, reduce heat to a simmer and let cook for about 1 hour (to check if the potatoes are done, pierce through the potato with a knife. If it goes through smoothly the potato is done).

2. Wearing heatproof gloves, peel the skin off the potatoes with the edge of a spoon. Place the peeled potatoes in a bowl and smash them with a masher or ricer.

3. Pour in the warm milk and stir to combine. Season with salt and white pepper to taste and stir until smooth.

4. Stir in the cubes of butter and keep stirring until all the butter is melted and incorporated. Keep warm until ready to serve.

For the chicken:

1. In a heavy-bottomed pan, over medium heat, warm about an inch of oil to 350 F.

2. In a shallow bowl add the cornstarch, salt, black pepper and ginger. Whisk to combine.

3. Dredge the chicken pieces in the cornstarch mixture to coat well.

4. Place chicken in the hot oil and fry for around 8 minutes, turning once. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate. Let the fried chicken rest, until warm, then return to the pan and fry again for another 3 minutes.

For the sweet and sour sauce:

In a small sauce pot combine all the ingredients and cook over medium heat until bubbling. Reduce heat to a simmer and let cook until the sauce is thick like glue.

Dip the fried chicken pieces in the sauce to coat.

To serve:

Sprinkle the chicken with sesame seeds and green onions and serve with mashed potatoes on the side.



Tourism Observer

PREPARE: Sweet & Sour Pork

Pineapple, tomato and pork combine in a sweet-tangy sauce in this easy, bright- flavored sweet and sour pork stir-fry. This dish does have a fair amount of acid (from vinegar, tomatoes and pineapple), which can affect the patina of your wok. So remove the food from the wok as soon as you're done cooking, and if your wok shows any signs of rusting, reseason it.

Ingredients

1 pound trimmed boneless pork shoulder or butt (see Tips), cut into ¼-inch-thick bite-size slices

1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

4 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce, divided

2 teaspoons plus 1 tablespoon Shao Hsing rice wine (see Note) or dry sherry, divided

1½ teaspoons plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch, divided

¼ teaspoon salt

⅛ teaspoon ground white pepper

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

2 tablespoons pineapple juice

2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar

1 tablespoon ketchup

1½ teaspoons light brown sugar

2 tablespoons peanut oil or canola oil, divided

½ cup sliced carrot ( ¼ inch thick)

1 small tomato, thinly sliced into wedges (about 1 cup)

¼ cup finely chopped scallions

2 cups bite-size pineapple chunks, fresh or juice-packed canned (drained)

Preparation

Active 45 minutes

Ready In 45 minutes

Combine pork, ginger, 2 teaspoons soy sauce, 2 teaspoons rice wine (or sherry), 1½ teaspoons cornstarch, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.

Stir in sesame oil until well combined.

Combine pineapple juice, vinegar, ketchup and brown sugar in a small bowl.

Stir in the remaining 2 teaspoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon rice wine (or sherry) and 2 teaspoons cornstarch.

Heat a 14-inch flat-bottomed wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds of contact.

Swirl in 1 tablespoon peanut (or canola) oil.

Carefully add the pork in one layer. Cook undisturbed for 1½ minutes, letting it begin to sear.

Then, using a metal spatula, stir-fry until the pork is lightly browned but not cooked through, 1 minute. Transfer to a plate.

Swirl the remaining 1 tablespoon oil into the wok, add carrot and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Return the pork with any juice to the wok.

Add tomato and scallions and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Swirl in the pineapple juice mixture, add pineapple and stir-fry until the pork is just cooked through and the sauce is lightly thickened, 1 to 2 minutes more.

Pork shoulder or butt is available both bone-in or boneless and typically sold in portions significantly larger than 1 pound—3 to 5 pounds.

To get the amount you need for this recipe, ask the butcher to start with 1½ to 1¾ pounds before trimming to make sure you get 1 pound of trimmed boneless pork shoulder or butt.

Or buy a larger portion and freeze the rest for another use.

If you're making this with canned pineapple, you can use 2 tablespoons juice from the can.

To season your wok the traditional way: Scrub a new carbon-steel wok with hot water, soap and a scouring pad to remove the factory coating.

Rinse and dry thoroughly. Heat the wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds.

Swirl 2 tablespoons peanut oil or vegetable oil into the pan. Add ½ cup sliced unpeeled fresh ginger and 1 bunch scallions cut into 2-inch pieces.

Reduce the heat to medium and stir-fry the mixture, pressing it into the sides of the wok as you go.

Keep stir-frying and pressing the seasonings all over the wok for about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool. (Discard the scallions and ginger.)

Shao Hsing (or Shao xing) is a seasoned rice wine. It is available at most Asian specialty markets and in the Asian section of some larger supermarkets. If unavailable, dry sherry is the best substitute.

People with celiac disease or gluten-sensitivity should use soy sauces that are labeled "gluten-free," as soy sauce may contain wheat or other gluten-containing sweeteners and flavors.

Serve and enjoy Sweet & Sour Pork

Chicken In Orange Sauce

This is one of those dishes that makes you feel quite pleased with yourself. Fast, easy, healthy, and more delicious than Chinese takeout – a series of winning propositions. You can prep pretty much all the ingredients ahead of time, making this a fantastic last-minute weeknight dinner.

The sweetness in the sauce makes this a dish that normally picky eaters will lean into. There’s plenty of sauce, too, which you’ll be happy about as you spoon it over hot rice or quinoa.

When you are feeding a group with one or more vegetarians in the mix, this kind of recipe makes life so much easier. Essentially you sauté up some chicken in one pan, some tofu in another, then divide up the simple sauce between the two.

Serve this meal with:

Clean & Spicy Asian Greens
Rice or quinoa

Chicken in Orange Sauce

Serves 6

3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
3/4 cup orange juice, preferably fresh
1/3 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce, or 1/4 cup regular soy sauce plus 2 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon finely minced peeled fresh ginger
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 3/4-inch pieces (see Recipe Notes below for a tofu alternative)
Kosher or coarse salt
2 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
4 scallions, white and light green parts, sliced
Hot cooked rice (brown or white) or quinoa, for serving

Toasted sesame seeds, for serving (optional)

Whisk together the garlic, honey, orange zest and juice, soy sauce, rice vinegar, cornstarch, ginger, and pepper in a small bowl. Set the sauce aside.

Season the chicken lightly with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a very large skillet or a wok over high heat. Add the chicken and sauté until it starts to turn white, 3 minutes. Add the sauce and scallions and cook until 
the sauce thickens and the chicken is cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes more.
Serve over hot rice or quinoa, with the sesame seeds sprinkled over if desired.
Recipe Notes

Tofu in orange sauce: Replace the chicken with 2 pounds extra-firm tofu, blotted dry and cut into 3/4-inch cubes. To get the tofu nicely browned, in Step 2, heat the oil in the skillet over high heat, and when very hot, add the cubes, which should sizzle and sear (watch for splattering). Cook the tofu, not moving it for at least 3 minutes, so it has a chance to brown on the bottom. Flip the cubes using a thin metal spatula (knowing some cubes will break) and continue to cook to brown the bottoms, 3 minutes more. Add the sauce and scallions and continue with the recipe.
If you want to make the dish half chicken and half tofu, use a pound of each, sauté them separately in two large skillets with a tablespoon of oil in each, and divide the sauce and scallions evenly between the pans. The cooking times are the same.
What the kids can do: Zest the orange and juice it (if you are using fresh juice). Kids of the right age can cut up the chicken (younger ones can tackle the tofu) with an age-appropriate knife.
Make ahead: The chicken or tofu can be cut up a couple of days ahead of time, and the sauce can be combined a couple of days ahead, and refrigerated, too.