Easy air fryer sweet and sour chicken
You don't need to get a Chinese takeaway with this easy and tasty sweet and sour chicken recipe you can crisp up in the air fryer
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 650 g boneless chicken thighs
- 3 tablespoons of cornflour/cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon of light soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp white pepper
- oil spray or oil to coat the chicken
For the sweet and sour sauce
- 3 tablespoons of tomato ketchup
- 2 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon of shaoxing wine
- 250 ml water
- 1 tablespoon of cornflour/cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons of ginger puree or grated ginger
- 1 red pepper or green pepper or a mix of both
- 1 small onion, chopped optional (I don't use as my kids aren't keen on onions)
- 2 garlic cloves minced
Instructions
- Slice you chicken into bite-sized pieces. Get a large bowl, and add the chicken pieces, the 1 tablespoon light soy sauce, a pinch of salt and white pepper and the cornflour/cornstarch. Mix together well, making sure all the chicken is coated in the cornflour. Leave the chicken for five minutes to marinate, or longer if you have time.
- Get your air fryer basket, and lightly spray with oil to prevent the chicken from sticking. Lay the chicken in the basket in a single layer, then spray with oil. If you don't have oil spray, use a brush to do the same
- Once the chicken is cooked and golden brown, put take them out of the air fryer and put them to one side. You may need to do the chicken in a few batches.
- While the chicken is cooking you can prepare the sweet and sour sauce. In a bowl, combine the brown sugar, tomato ketchup, soy sauce, water, rice wine vinegar, cornflour/cornstarch and shoaxing wine. Mix together well.
- Get a knife, and cube the onion (if using), and cube the peppers/bell pepper. When you're ready to make sauce, get a non-stick pan and heat around 2tsps of vegetable oil on a medium heat. Add the onion (if using) and the peppers/bell peppers and stir fry for 2-3 minutes until they start to soften. The add the ginger paste and garlic and cook for a further minute.
- Get your sauce, and add to the pan. It will begin bubbling, so keep stirring making sure the the sugar begins to dissolve. Add the chicken and continue to stir for 2 minutes, so all the ingredients are coated in the lovely sweet and sour sauce. I like a lot of sauce which is why I add the water. If you feel it's still too thick and sticky, you can add more water until you get your desired consistency.
- Before serving the sweet and sour chicken, sprinkle with chopped spring onions/green onions. Enjoy alongside some steamed rice.
Nutrition
Calories: 432kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 28gFat: 27gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 159mgSodium: 1173mgPotassium: 362mgFiber: 0.2gSugar: 0.2gVitamin A: 127IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 18mgIron: 1mg