Dragon Chicken

Ingredients

• FOR THE MARINADE
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
• 2 tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp garlic and ginger paste
• 3 tbsp corn flour (corn starch)
• FOR THE DRAGON CHICKEN
• 450g (1lb) chicken breasts, sliced into long strips against the grain or cubed
• 12 cashews
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 x 2.5cm (1 inch) ginger, finely chopped
• 3 spring onions (scallions) finely chopped
• 1 tbsp dried chilli flakes (more or less to taste)
• 1 red bell pepper or the equivalent of red, green and yellow bell peppers, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 70ml ketchup
• 1 tsp honey
• 70ml (1/4 cup) chicken stock or water
• 1 tbsp Asian chilli sauce or any chilli sauce you like
• Lime juice of vinegar (optional and to taste)

Steps

1. Whisk all of the marinade ingredients in a mixing bowl until smooth with no lumps. Add the chicken strips or cubes and mix them into the marinade until completely coated. Allow to marinate for 30 minutes up to 2 hours or just carry on with the recipe. The longer marination time will add to the flavour.
2. When ready to cook, heat about 7.5cm (3 inches) of rapeseed (canola) oil in a large wok or frying pan over a medium high heat. The oil is ready for frying when thousands of little bubbles form around a wooden spatula or chopstick on contact with the oil.
3. Carefully add the chicken to the oil and fry for a few minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a plate and set aside. Discard all but about 3 tbsp of the oil or filter it through a cloth to use for other frying.
4. Heat the remaining oil over a medium high heat and stir in the cashews. Stir for about a minute, browning them all over and then stir in the chopped garlic, ginger and spring onions.
5. Continue stirring for about a minute and then add the chilli flakes and bell pepper. Fry for about a minute to soften some and then stir in the soy sauce, ketchup, honey and stock or water. Bring this to a simmer. This will help cook the bell pepper through and will also become the sauce.
6. Add the fried chicken and stir well to coat. The sauce should literally stick to the chicken. Season with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds to serve. You can add a little vinegar or lime juice to the sauce, to taste, for a tarter flavour. Dragon chicken is usually served just like this as a starter but you could make it into a more substantial meal by serving it over steamed rice.