1/2 c Raw peanuts 3 c Peanut oil 2 Whole chicken breasts at -room temp. 1 lg Egg white 1 1/2 tb Water chestnut flour SAUCE: 4 Green onions 2 lg Cloves garlic 1 tb Minced ginger root 1/2 c Chicken stock 1/2 tb Sesame oil 1/2 tb Chinese red vingear 1/2 tb Dark soy sauce 1 1/2 ts (level) chili paste with -garlic 1 tb Dry sherry 1 pn Sugar cornstarch paste Preparation: Trim ends off green onions and cut light green and white part into 1 sections. Mix all other sauce ingredients in 2-quart saucepan. Reserve. Pull skin off breasts, then pull chicken meat from bones. Slice meat into 1 strips, then crosswise to make 1 chunks. In bowl large enough to hold chicken, add egg white to water chestnut flour. Beat mixture with a single chopstick (not an egg beater or whisk). Stir chicken pieces into egg mixture to coat thoroughly. Marinate 5 minutes. Note: water chestnut flour gives a lighter crust than cornstarch, though the latter may be substituted. Deep-frying: Heat cooking oil in wok or deep-fryer to medium heat (you ll need more oil for deep-fryer). Fry peanuts until they are a light tan color; if a test peanut browns quickly, turn down heat. Remove peanuts with strainer or slotted spoon; drain on paper towel or paper bag. Reserve. Turn up heat slightly for chicken. Test a chunk first: chicken should raise to surface immediately & brown in about 2 minutes. Deep-fry coated chicken chunks until golden brown. Deep-fry no more than 8 chunks at a time. Use long chopsticks or spatula to keep pieces separate while they are frying. Remove with long chopsticks or slotted spoon. Reserve. Sauce: While deep-frying chicken, heat sauce to simmer. Add green onions & peanuts about a minute before serving. At the last minute, add chicken pieces to sauce, mix quickly & serve.
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