Dragon Chicken

Recipe No: 25

When we were in Kerala for vacation last year, my brother took us to this awesome restaurant in Kottayam where they served Dragon Chicken as an appetizer. He selected this dish specially because his family likes it and he was sure that we will like it too… Oh boy!!! It was a real winner…. I tried to recreate it in that week itself, but the dish came much closer to the real one after many trials. So here it is friends, delicious Chinese style Dragon Chicken…just for you all to taste….

Ingredients                                                     Serves 4

For frying the Chicken

• Chicken breast cut into long thin stripes, washed and drained…1 cup ( heaping)
• Egg white……………1
• Corn flour…………..1 ½ Teaspoon
• Dark Soy Sauce…..1 Teaspoon
• Pepper powder….1/4 Teaspoon
• Salt…………………….A pinch
• Oil for deep frying

For Sauteing

• Oil……………………………………………2 Tablespoons
• Celery chopped……………………….1 Tablespoon (Optional)
• Garlic chopped…………………………2 Tablespoons
• Green/Spring Onion chopped….1/3 cup (White portion only)
• Green/ Spring onion chopped….1/3 cup (Green portion only)
• Red Chilly Paste……………………….1 Tablespoon (I used Sambal Oelek)
• Tomato Sauce………………………….3 Tablespoons
• Dark Soy Sauce…………………………1 Tablespoon
• Oyster sauce…………………………….1/2 Tablespoon
• Sugar………………………………………..1/2 Teaspoon
• Cashew pieces…………………………1/2 cup
• Salt if needed

Method of Preparation

1. Drain the chicken completely before starting. Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients in the marinade section except the oil.

2. Heat at least a cup of oil in a deep pan and deep fry the Chicken pieces in batches. Separate the pieces while you put it into the oil or they will stick together. Don’t crowd the oil, so make it in batches. If some of them are clumped, separate them once they are out of the oil. Frying will take only a few minutes as the pieces are very thin.
3. Toss the cashew pieces in a dry pan on a medium heat until a nice aroma comes. If you are using roasted Cashews then please avoid this step. Keep it aside for later use.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a shallow pan and saute Celery and Garlic for a minute. Follow this with the Spring onion whites. No need to saute it for long.
5. Now add Chilly sauce and fry for 30 seconds and add Tomato, Soy and Oyster sauces.
6. Mix well and add the fried Chicken and Cashew pieces. Toss well.
7. Adjust the salt and add the sugar.  Mix in half of the spring onion greens.
8. Serve hot decorated with the rest of the spring onion greens.

Notes: If Oyster Sauce is not available for, substitute it with one Tablespoon of Worcestershire Sauce. That will taste good too.

Don’t use Ketchup instead of tomato sauce because of there sweetness. If you don’t have tomato sauce, use tomato puree. For that put a medium sized tomato in hot water till the skin cracks.  Peel off the skin and blend it.

Add more salt if needed only in the last stage as most of the sauces in this recipe contains salt.

Frying the chicken and making the sauce can be done ahead of time. But mix them together only just before you serve it.

 Make it, enjoy the deliciousness and

serve it to your family with love…