Sep 27, 2010

Tempura (Battered) Chicken Bites

I used to be very picky when it came to eating things I wasn't used to. I didn't care for Chinese food because in my mind, it was all bamboo shoots and baby corn. I'm happy to say that the notion didn't last long. Now that I've learned a little more about Asian cuisine, I love it!

One of my favorite things when I would go out to our local Asian buffet is these little chicken bites that were battered. There would be either sweet and sour or peanut sauce to go with them. (I used ranch, lol.)

I had to find out how to make these lightly battered bites. If they are made correctly, they are not greasy and taste so much better than traditional fried chicken. Think Long John Silver's type of batter, only much lighter and crisper.

Ingredients:
  • 1/2 Cup flour
  • 1/2 Cup cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon white sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 2/3 Cup ice cold water

Mix the dry ingredients. Beat the egg and add to the water. The water needs to be cold in order for the batter to turn out right. Add to the dry ingredients and stir just until mixed. (There may be some lumps left and that's okay.)

I used 1 lb. of skinless chicken tenders. I cut them into small, bite size pieces. You can also leave them in strips and they will turn out well. After the chicken is cut, dredge it in flour (coat it in flour) and let rest for about 5-10 minutes while you are heating up your oil. Dip the coated chicken in the tempura batter, being sure to coat the entire piece. Don't worry if there is extra batter because those will drip off and make those crispy little munchy pieces that we all love but refuse to admit we love.

After you dip in the tempura batter, carefully place into the oil. Do not drop into the oil because it will splatter! I used about 3 inches of oil in my cast iron skillet. After one side was lightly brown, I turned to the other side. My chicken was done when it just barely floated to towards the top. You will need to check your first couple of pieces so that you can decide when they are done. There will be no pink left in the middle of the chicken.

These bites are good by themselves or with a dipping sauce. They go great with the Onigiri that I wrote about in the last post. Enjoy!

0 comments:

Post a Comment

 

Blog Template by YummyLolly.com - Header made with PS brushes by gvalkyrie.deviantart.com
Sponsored by Free Web Space