Chinese

Spicy Sriracha Garlic Chicken & Rice

September 9, 2017 by The Partial Ingredients

For everyone who has a sriracha addiction, you know that you can’t really go wrong with Sriracha. I mean, sometimes the “experiments” you do with this stuff will probably make the average person go, ‘you put that on what??’ Yep, sriracha goes with pretty much everything. The ones who are in the know understand where I’m coming from. Sriracha on avocado toast? Sure! On a bagel and cream cheese? Yes please! There really is no limit with this stuff.

Good American Chinese food can be hard to come by which is why I’ve taken to making it at home. It’s not hard to make and it’s probably a bit healthier than what you’d get at a restaurant. It makes for a perfect, easy week day dinner. For this recipe I based it off the classic Sweet n’ Sour chicken I used to get when I’d order take out. It’s not tough to make but full disclosure–it can be a little time consuming in terms of the breading and frying. It’s worth it though, seriously. I love the balance of spicy, sweet flavors. Serve it with a side of rice and peas and you will be glad you didn’t call take out!

Spicy Garlic Sriracha Chicken

An easy to make Chinese take-out style chicken slathered with a sweet and spicy Sriracha garlic sauce.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Chinese

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 2

Calories 550 kcal

Ingredients

1 1/2 tbsp Chili Garlic Sauce
2 tsp Sriracha
1/3 cup ketchup
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp garlic powder
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/4 cup water or more, depending on desired consistency
2 chicken breasts boneless skinless, cut into bite sized pieces
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt or more to taste
3/4 cup corn starch
2 large eggs beaten in a small flat bowl
1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup brown or white rice
1/2 cup green peas

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 325F.
Mix the chili garlic sauce, sriracha, ketchup, soy sauce, garlic powder, sugar, rice vinegar, ginger and water in a medium sized bowl. Taste and adjust according to desired taste.
Place the chicken, corn starch, salt and pepper in a large ziploc bag and toss together.
In a saute pan, heat the canola oil until hot but not smoking. Dip the chicken in the beaten egg and working in batches, fry for about 1-2 minutes on each side.
Place the cooked chicken onto a cookie sheet lined with tin foil. Once all of the chicken has been cooked, spoon half of the sauce over the chicken.
Cook the rice as directed on the package.
Cook the chicken 12 minutes in the oven at 325F.
Flip over and add the rest of the sauce. Cook for another 10 minutes.
Stir the peas into the cooked rice and cook for about 1 minute. Serve alongside the chicken with extra soy sauce and sriracha if desired.

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Take-Out Style Chinese Orange Chicken & Rice

October 4, 2016 by The Partial Ingredients

Take Out Style Chinese Orange Chicken

I never think to order take out Chinese food because I always just wind up making it from scratch. The reason for this is that I always have the ingredients lying around so I figure why not just make it myself? The recipe is easy to make and healthier than take out so there’s benefits to making it at home. The chicken is full of orangey, tangy flavor without being overly sweet. You can also customize a bit with the sweetness by reducing the sugar by about 1/4 cup. I love how tender the chicken winds up being when it’s made at home–there’s really no reason to pick up the take out! I plan on making this one a lot. I like to serve it with simple rice bowls with peas or veggies. You can also skip the rice and opt for more veggies for a lower carb version.
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Sweet & Sour Tofu and Rice Bowls

June 4, 2016 by The Partial Ingredients

Sweet & Sour Tofu and Rice Bowls

I love tofu but it can be a bit tricky to prepare correctly. I’ve had a couple issues with tofu, I wonder if anyone else had this happen? No matter how much oil I use in the pan, the tofu will stick to the pan and all the nice crispiness is sitting there stuck to the bottom! Very frustrating. Then if I’m using tofu in a stir fry, it has a tendency to crumble apart. Or if I’m attempting crispy baked tofu, it can become hard and have an unpleasant texture.

Now after a lot of experimenting I think I figured out the perfect way to get crispy fried tofu but still incredibly soft on the inside. I follow the same steps as pan frying sweet and sour chicken or fish: dipping the tofu in egg and batter, then finishing off in the oven. So simple I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought of it earlier! The tofu really does taste just like sweet and sour chicken. Besides the awesome texture of the fried tofu, the sauce is really where it’s at. It caramelizes to perfection and is just so tasty! I served the tofu with just a basic rice bowl and peas as a side.

Sweet & Sour Tofu and Rice Bowls
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Homemade Wonton Soup

July 31, 2014 by The Partial Ingredients

Nothing gets any better than a highly nutritious broth and savory wontons. I am a huge fan of amazing stocks and this soup really knocks it out of the park when it comes to a flavorful broth. One of the best parts about making good stock is the transformation of leftovers and all the “throwaway” stuff. Pig’s feet and chicken bones aren’t exactly on my weeknight menu but this recipe unlocks the power of those humble ingredients! I would consider this a great weekend project since it does take some time to make all the wontons. Other than the time it takes to assemble the wontons this recipe is really easy to prepare. It is so worth it and the flavor was unbeatable. I will definitely be making this soup again!

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Egg Fried Rice

August 4, 2013 by The Partial Ingredients

This recipe is based on the American Chinese food classic: egg fried rice. Now instead of ordering take-out I can whip up a batch of fried rice on the cheap and in no time at all. This recipe is probably a lot healthier compared to the fried rice at Chinese restaurants. You can give the rice a boost by adding more veggies like bean sprouts, green onion, or baby corn. I had some leftover Korean BBQ Chicken and served it with the rice which was very tasty! You can also add a protein to the rice (like chicken, tofu or pork) to make it more of a main course too.

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Veggie Dumplings with Tomato Chutney Dipping Sauce

July 6, 2013 by The Partial Ingredients

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June 10, 2011 by The Partial Ingredients

Now that I had the Char Siu ready to go, I could now make the bao! Char Siu Bao are little dumplings that are stuffed with pork, chicken, or eggs. BBQ pork is the most common filing used in the buns, and can be either steamed or baked. I actually tried both ways but I ended up preferring the steaming method. They turned out softer and had a more dumpling-like consistency.

This recipe involves quite a bit of time and work. It takes a little creativity as well if you don’t own a steamer. It was all worth it because they turned out so tasty! John and I were immediately hooked on them. I had never worked with yeast before and that turned out to be a time consuming, but fairly easy part of the process. You just have to wait a while for the yeast to rise, so I made the dough and formed the buns the night before to save time. The buns were great dipped in a little soy and hoisin sauce, and topped with fresh green onions.

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Baby Bok Choy in a Lemongrass and Ginger Soy Sauce

June 6, 2011 by The Partial Ingredients

As a side dish to the Char Siu, I created this easy and flavorful bok choy recipe. It’s pretty simple since all you do is steam the bok choy and then stir fry it in garlic and the sauce for a few minutes. There are lots of variations and you can use all sorts of seasonings and sauces for baby bok choy. This dish went nicely with the pork and complimented its flavors. Bok choy tastes like a cross between broccoli and cabbage, and would be a great addition to stir-fries.

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Char Siu (Chinese BBQ Pork)

June 6, 2011 by The Partial Ingredients

In order to make Char Siu Bao, or Chinese pork buns, you have to make the barbeque pork first. Making the Char Siu is pretty simple because all it requires is mixing up the sauce, marinating the meat, and roasting it in the oven. I decided to use a pork shoulder roast because tougher cuts work perfectly for slow cooking and results in tender cuts of meat. I cooked the char siu in the oven, but a slow cooker would be perfect for this recipe. The pork was great! The sauce is flavored with hoisin and five spice, and had a wonderful, complex flavor. The sauce is supposed to have a deep reddish color, so I added a drop of red food coloring to the sauce. I served the char siu with rice and the baby bok choy with lemongrass and ginger.

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