If you love to orange or tangerine chicken when you order Chinese takeout, this recipe is for you! Traditional citrus chicken gets a sweet-and-sour twist with a Pittman & Davis Ruby Red Grapefruit. If you like extra tang (balanced with sweet brown sugar) in your citrus chicken, you need to try this…one grapefruit should do it for both zest and juice! (Be sure to zest the grapefruit before juicing it.)
Ingredients:
For the sauce:
⅓ c. Pittman & Davis Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice
1 Tbsp. Pittman & Davis Ruby Red Grapefruit zest
1½ c. water
⅓ c. rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 c. brown sugar
2″ fresh ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. chili garlic sauce
For the chicken:
2 lbs. chicken breasts, cubed
3 large eggs, whisked
1 qt. peanut oil, for frying
¼ c. scallions, greens only (garnish)
3 c. flour
1 Tbsp. kosher salt
1 Tbsp. ground pepper
For the slurry:
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
3 Tbsp. water
Directions:
- Mix sauce ingredients together in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Simmer for 10 minutes; allow to cool slightly and strain through a metal strainer. Set aside.
- Dredge chicken cubes in flour, then eggs, then flour again to form a thick breading over each piece.
- Heat oil to 350°F in a large pot or wok. Fry chicken in batches until golden browned and cooked through (about 10 minutes). Let drain briefly on paper towels.
- Add sauce to a large skillet or wok and bring to a simmer over high heat.
- Make slurry by stirring cornstarch and water in a small bowl; add to heated sauce. it should almost immediately thicken.
- Toss chicken in with sauce and stir to coat chicken evenly. Serve over rice with chopped scallions and extra soy sauce.
