WW: Hoisin Explosion Chicken

Wok Wednesdays wokking thru Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge
by Grace Young



The one thing I like about the recipes in this book and stir-frying in general, is being able to get a meal on the table in no time. So when it is time to whip up a WW recipe I wait till the last minute before prepping.

Oops - not so with this one!

Don't get me wrong - this is still an easy recipe to throw together, it just has a couple of extra steps that I was not expecting. Yes, I did read the recipe - the other day. I just forgot the extra steps of chilling the prepped chicken (meat mixed with cornstarch, egg white, rice wine, salt and water) for thirty minutes and the need to "blanch" the chicken in boiling oiled-water beforehand; a technique called velveting.

Normally when a recipe calls for chicken breast, I sub chicken thighs for they are generally more moist. The last two dinners I made calling for breast meat, I used breast meat, and was sorry; the chicken turned out extremely dry. However, my positive experience with Grace's recipes made me stick with using breast meat once again.

The chicken turned out amazingly tender and silky smooth; well worth the extra step and time.

Hoisin sauce is described as salty, sweet and spicy. However, the brands that I have used have not come across all that spicy to me, so I was confused by the title Hoisin Explosion Chicken. Explosion to me translates to POW! a hit of spiciness so hot you run for a big glass of water hoping to squelch the heat.

While prepping my ingredients (mise en place), the recipe called for one-half teaspoon of red pepper flakes - this is where the POW! comes from.

Another successful recipe - you can't go wrong with this book.

Success meter: (1-3): 3

I made one small change and that is I used red bell pepper in place of green.

The blanched chicken.

 

Those are purple carrots - not burnt. :)

Wouldn't this be beautiful served on a black plate..

You will not find the recipe here on my blog or within the Wok Wednesdays community. We encourage our readers to purchase this book at their local independent bookstore or on-line to support the publishing industry and to help keep books alive! I know I prefer to flip through the pages of a book rather than read them electronically; nothing compares to the feel and smell of a printed book.

Make sure to visit my co-wokkers to see their results on this stir-fry.

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