Originally posted September 8, 2010
A very good friend of mine was excited to share a sweet and sour chicken recipe with me that was healthy and that her husband loved. How often does that happen? She thought I should try it too, since my kids tend to like sweeter foods. It sounded so good (and easy), I had to make it this week. The challenge was that I had soccer practice for both kids on the night I wanted to try it. How was I going to make this dinner and ensure we weren’t eating at 7:30 pm?
Ahh, enter the rice cooker and slow cooker! Since I wanted something a bit more nutritious and I would be gone over an hour, brown rice seemed like the perfect solution. I cooked red quinoa with the brown rice to boost the nutrition even more. The family agrees the rice-red quinoa combo is a good one.
TIP: When cooking red quinoa with rice, add two times more water than quinoa. For example, if you add 1/2 cup quinoa, add 1 extra cup of water. Even though the quinoa takes less time than the brown rice, it came out fine. I usually add about half the amount of quinoa that I add of the rice. For example, 1 cup of rice and 1/2 cup of quinoa.
The slow cooker came in handy to simmer the chicken in the sauce. Don’t always think of it as a piece of equipment just used for all day cooking; it is great for finishing a dish that cooks quickly. I par-cooked the tenders, placed them in the slow cooker with the veggies and sauce, set the temperature to low for 90 minutes and dashed out the door. When I returned, dinner was ready.
The other bonus was that the dish was naturally gluten-free. Now that two of us in the family are eating that way, it really was the perfect meal. I hope you’ll try it.
Gluten-Free Sweet and Sour Chicken
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
- 1 egg white or 30 gm egg white
- 1/2 tsp fine sea or kosher salt
- 1 – 1 1/2 pound chicken tenders or chicken breast cut into strips
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger (keep peeled ginger in the freezer and then grate right into the dish!)
- 1 small can (about 8 ounces) pineapple chunks, juice reserved
- 1 red, yellow or orange bell pepper, cut into large pieces (if you like green peppers, you can use those as well)
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil for frying like avocado
- 1 small to medium sweet potato, peeled and cubed
- 1/2 yellow onion, sliced
Optional: 1/2 cup chopped peanuts or cashews for garnish
- Mix egg white, cornstarch and salt in a medium bowl large enough for the tenders. Add tenders and, using your hands, coat each piece of chicken with the mixture. Put aside for about 5 minutes. By the way, this is a great method for making gluten-free crispy chicken.
- Pour ketchup, vinegar, brown sugar, ginger and pineapple juice into the bowl of a slow cooker*. Stir to combine. Add pineapple and peppers.
- Heat medium to large non-stick pan with the oil. When the oil is hot, add the chicken tenders and cook on each side until the chicken is lightly browned. The chicken may not be done but will continue cooking in the slow cooker. Place chicken in slow cooker.
- Place pan back on the stove and cook onions and sweet potatoes for about 3 to 5 minutes. Place this on top of the chicken.Place cover on slow cooker, set to low for 90 minutes.
- Serve with brown rice and quinoa. Optionally garnish with peanuts or cashews.
*If you don’t have a slow cooker or want to eat this sooner, make the sauce in a large pan. Add the pineapple and peppers. Bring to a low boil. After the chicken is cooked in the separate pan, add to the pan. Cover pan and let the sauce simmer. While sauce is simmering, cook the onions and sweet potatoes. Add to the pan with the chicken, placing on top of the chicken. Cook about 15 minutes until the sweet potatoes are tender and the chicken is cooked through. Remove cover and cook another 5 minutes to thicken the sauce. Serve with brown rice and quinoa. Optionally garnish with peanuts or cashews.
*If you want to use an electric pressure cooker, pre-cook the chicken in the pressure cooker on sautè mode. Once the chicken is golden on both sides, remove and place on a plate. Drain all but 2 teaspoons of the oil. Add the onion and sweet potatoes. Cook about 3 to 5 minutes. Turn off sautè mode. Remove onion and sweet potatoes and place in a small bowl. Add sauce ingredients and stir. Add, in this order, chicken, onion, sweet potato, peppers, and pineapple. Put cover on. Set to Manual high pressure for 5 minutes and quick release. Serve with brown rice and quinoa. Optionally garnish with peanuts or cashews.
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