Japanese Sweet and Sour Chicken

Japanese-style sweet and sour chicken with chicken and vegetables glazed with black vinegar sweet and sour sauce.

This mouthwatering sweet and sour chicken recipe is loaded with juicy marinated chicken and a colorful medley of flash-fried vegetables glazed in a flavorful black vinegar sweet and sour sauce.

Course Entree

Cuisine Japanese-Chinese

Level Intermediate

Main Ingredient Poultry

Diet Dairy-Free

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Total Time 30

Servings servings

Calories 407kcal

Author Marc Matsumoto

Ingredients

For Chicken

350 grams boneless skin-on chicken thighs
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sake
1 teaspoon grated ginger
⅓ cup potato starch

For Vegetables

100 grams Japanese eggplant (1 small one)
100 grams lotus root (½ rhizome)
100 grams Japanese sweet potato (½ small one)
100 grams carrot (about ⅔ of a large carrot)
100 grams mild green pepper (1 or 2 small ones)
vegetable oil (for deep frying)

For Sweet & Sour Sauce

3 tablespoons evaporated cane sugar
3 tablespoons sake
2 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons black vinegar
1 tablespoon rice vinegar

Grams + US Cups - US Standard

Instructions

Cut the chicken into large bite-sized pieces and marinate with the soy sauce, sake, and grated ginger. It's best to let the chicken marinate for a few hours.
350 grams boneless skin-on chicken thighs, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon sake, 1 teaspoon grated ginger
To prepare the vegetables, cut the eggplant, sweet potato, and carrot into an oblique cut by slicing bite-sized pieces off at a 45° angle and then rotating the ingredient a quarter turn between each cut.
100 grams Japanese eggplant, 100 grams carrot, 100 grams Japanese sweet potato
Peel and slice the lotus root into ¼-inch thick rounds and soak them in water acidified with lemon juice or vinegar.
100 grams lotus root
Remove the seeds and membranes from the peppers and cut them into squares.
100 grams mild green pepper
Preheat 1-inch vegetable oil in a high-sided pot to 340°F (170°C). Prepare a cooling rack by lining it with a few sheets of paper towels.
vegetable oil
Drain the lotus root and dry them well with paper towels. Dust all of the vegetables except the peppers in a thin layer of potato starch.
⅓ cup potato starch
Fry the vegetables one at a time. The peppers take about 20 seconds, the eggplant will take about 1.5-2 minutes, the lotus root will take about 1 minute, and the sweet potatoes and carrots will take about 3-4 minutes. Drain the vegetables on the paper towel-lined rack as they cook.
To fry the chicken, dust them in a thick coating of potato starch and then fry them for about 4-5 minutes until they're golden brown and crisp. Drain the chicken on the paper towel-lined rack as well.
To make the sweet and sour sauce, add the sugar, sake, and soy sauce to a 12-inch frying pan and bring the mixture to a boil.
3 tablespoons evaporated cane sugar, 3 tablespoons sake, 2 tablespoons soy sauce
Once the sugar has dissolved and it no longer smells like alcohol, add the black vinegar, rice vinegar, and fried chicken and vegetables to the pan.
3 tablespoons black vinegar, 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
Toss everything together to glaze with the sauce. Once the black vinegar sauce has thickened and coated everything, serve the Japanese sweet and sour chicken with rice.

Video

Nutrition