NOTE: I've recently received a few comments about the ownership of this recipe and some not so pleasant dirty laundry being aired on my blog, by one of the person(s) involved in the dispute. Prior to posting the recipe I received written permission to share the recipe from Rasa Malaysa-Bee Yinn Low. I'm unaware of any legal action about the recipe and its ownership therefore, I'm trusting Bees word of ownership and permission to post her recipe at this time. If legal action becomes and issue, I will follow whatever course seem prudent at that time.
Recreating restaurant quality, traditional Asian cuisine has been a passion of mine for many years, but the art of cooking the cuisine is illusive to say the least.
I've often dreamed of learning traditional cooking technic from great Chinese chefs like Ming Tsai, and chef Martin Yan. What a privileged it would be to learn from these great chefs.
I would be just as honored to step inside the kitchen of any lao lao (Chinese grandmother), and soak in years of her home-cooking experience. Unfortunately, I haven't had the opportunity to do either, but I still attempt to fashion recipes from the region nonetheless.
Offering hundreds of professional websites, I've scoured the internet for food bloggers, and cookbook authors looking for authentic, easy to cook Asian cuisine.
My dear friends, Ann Low owner of Anncoo Journal, and Biren owner of Roti n Rice have offered years of cooking inspiration, with their fabulous Asian recipes. I've attempted to make their authentic delicacies with great success, and over the years have fostered friendships with both of these amazing women. I am truly blessed by old, and new friendships cultivated from the ever-expanding, internet online food community!
True to form, the internet has offered up another artful master of Asian cuisine, offering a recipe that meets the mark for one of my favorite Chinese American dishes, Chinese Honey Chicken. RASAMALAYSIA.com serves a “spot on” recipe for the dish as well as, hundreds of other easy to cook recipes!
Rasa Malaysia is authored by Bee Yinn Low, a cookbook author, professional recipe developer, and content publisher who is currently based in Irvine, California, USA. Born and raised in Penang, Malaysia, Bee was exposed to all sorts of cooking styles since she was little. Bee’s first cookbook “Easy Chinese Recipes” is currently the best selling Chinese cookbook onAmazon. As a recipe developer, Bee works with brands such as Mizkan America,WorldFoods, Betty Crocker,and more.
Sadly, my tastes are accustomed to the American version of Chinese flavors, especially when it comes to eating Honey or Sesame Chicken. This admission comes with a warning; I am always eager to experience "real" Asian cuisine, trying just about anything served to me however, there is nothing more satisfying than a big plate of sweet, Chinese Honey Chicken accompanied by a steaming bowl of white rice.
Bee Yinn Low has perfected the art of great tasting, easy recipes suited for American eaters. With permission from Rasa Malaysia, I'll be sharing Bee Yinn's recipe which I doubled to accommodate my large family, with a few minor modifications.
- 1 lb boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes
- Oil, for deep-frying
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with 4 teaspoons of water, for sauce thickening
- Salt and sugar to taste
- Toasted sesame seeds, to garnish
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 dashes ground white pepper
- 1 egg white
- ½ cup all-purpose flour, sifted
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup water, ice-cold
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil, or regular cooking oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 cloves garlic, sliced or lightly bruised
- ⅓ cup pure honey (after doubling recipe, I added ¼ cup)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Chinese cooking wine, or dry sherry wine (after doubling recipe, I added 3 teaspoons)
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (after doubling recipe, I added 5 teaspoons)
- ¼-1/2 cup of water
- Marinate the chicken cubes with the Marinade for 5 minutes.
- Make the Frying Batter. In a large bowl, lightly whisk the egg white, and mix in the rest of the Frying Batter ingredients. Batter should not be lumpy, nor too runny, but smooth. Place another bowl with ice cubes underneath the frying batter bowl. Drop in the chicken cubes, mix well until they are well coated. Let it sit for about 30 minutes to 1 hour in the refrigerator.
- Prepare to make the Honey Garlic Sauce mixture. Mix all the sauce ingredients well and set aside.
- Heat up a wok with deep-frying oil. Gently drop in the battered chicken cubes, one by one, making sure it is spread out to prevent sticking, overcrowding the wok, and not fried properly. Turn the heat down to medium-high, and continue to deep-fry until the color changes to golden brown and completely cooked. Dish out and drain on paper towels.
- Reserve 3 tablespoons of deep-frying oil in the wok, and stir-fry the garlic until it is browned and the oil is fragrant. Dish out the garlic, and discard. Leave about 2-3 tablespoons of garlic oil in the wok.
- Heat up the wok with the garlic oil from previous step, gently pour in the Honey Garlic Sauce mixture, and bring to a light simmer, add in the cornstarch mixture to thicken the sauce, give it a quick stir and adjust salt/sugar/water to taste.
- Here, you can either dish out some sauce for dipping later and just keep enough to coat the fried chicken cubes in the wok, OR, toss in the chicken and briefly stir well, making sure the chicken is well coated in the sauce, dish out and sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds and serve. Alternatively, you can also keep the sauce separate from the chicken, and dip as you eat.
- Serve, Chinese Honey Chicken with a bowl of hot steamed Jasmine rice or serve as is, with extra toasted sesame seeds to garnish.
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