Lemon Chicken: The Westernized Version

Name: Lemon Chicken: The Westernized Version
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 35 g (1¼ oz) unbleached plain flour; 2 teaspoons cornflour blended with 1 teaspoon water; 1 teaspoon Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry; 1 teaspoon cornflour; 1 teaspoon light soy sauce; 65 g (2¼ oz) potato flour or cornflour; Groundnut oil, for deep-frying; 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil; Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste; 2 teaspoons groundnut oil; 120 ml (4 fl oz) water; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda; 120 ml (4 fl oz) Chinese Chicken Stock or store-bought fresh stock; 450 g (1 lb) boneless, skinless chicken thighs; 1 teaspoon salt; 2 dried red chillies, crushed; 1½ tablespoons grated lemon zest; ½ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper; 2 teaspoons Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry; 1 tablespoon finely sliced garlic; 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil; 1 tablespoon light soy sauce; 1 tablespoon sugar; 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice; 1 tablespoon crushed fermented black beans

Preparation info

Serves
4

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Easy Family Dishes

By Ken Hom

Published 1998

About

Chicken breasts in batter tend to be dried out and uninteresting. I have altered this classic Westernized version by using thighs instead of breast meat for a tastier dish. Many Chinese chefs use potato flour to enhance crispiness.

Ingredients

450 g (1 lb) boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 teaspoon salt

Main course

Method

Cut the chicken into 2.5 cm (1 in) pieces and evenly coat them with the salt, pepper, sesame oil, soy sauce, Shaoxing rice wine and cornflour.

Mix the batter ingredients in a medium-sized bowl with a whisk and beat until smooth.

Heat a wok or deep pan until it is hot and swirl in the oi