Chicken Chilli 

When it come to Chinese cuisine, I am a huge Chinese food lover. Getting the flavors correct in making a Chinese dish is very crucial, or else you would end up with an entirely different dish - which might not taste so good. Now no one would want that, right? South East Asian cuisine is really different from Chinese cuisine. The sauces that are used are not really popular in our cuisine. What i am saying is we are not used to the traditional, pure Chinese cuisine. A lot of people make their own versions of Chinese food, which has a desi touch in it. When I first wanted to make Chicken Chilli, I read through various versions of this dish. I tried out many, but the recipe I am going to share with you is by far my favorite one. It is my own version which I made up after trying out a couple of other methods. This dish is of Pakistani Chinese Cuisine which is an adaptation of Chinese cuisine as per Pakistani tastes.
It might take a little bit of effort in preparing it, but trust me it is totally worth it once it is done. The crunchy chicken pieces are my absolute favorite in the whole dish. Do share with me in the comments what is your favorite element of the dish, when you prepare it at home!

What you need for Chicken Chilli :

For Marination 

Chicken (thighs/breasts)  300 grams
Vinegar 1/2 tsp
Sugar 1/2 tsp
Ginger Garlic Paste 1 tbsp
Black pepper 1/2 tsp
Cold Water 1/2 cup
Salt 1/2 tsp

For Batter

Corn Flour 1/4 cup
All purpose flour 1/2 cup
Baking Power 1/8th tsp
Oil 2tbsp

For Sauce

Spring onion 1 large
Capsicum 2 large
Onion 2 medium size
Ginger chopped 1 tsp
Garlic chopped 1 tsp
Chilli garlic paste 2tsp
Soya sauce 3 tbsp
Salt 1/3 tsp
Sugar 1/2 tsp
Black pepper 1 tsp
Cornflour 1 tsp
Water 1/4th cup

Method for Chilli Chicken

1. Cut chicken into bite size pieces. Marinate chicken in salt, vinegar, sugar and 1/2 cup cold water and leave it in fridge for  for 1 to 2 hours. This step helps the chicken to be moist and juicy and not get dry when it's cooked.
2. Meanwhile cut the capsicum in pointed triangles and onion in bulb like shape. Also chop ginger garlic and spring onions. Cut the green and white part of spring onions separately.
3. After 2 hours add 2 tbsp oil and black pepper to the chicken. Leave it for another 15 min. 
4. Then add the corn flour, all purpose flour, baking flour and oil to the chicken. Leave it for another 15min. This will create a batter for the chicken.
5. Deep fry the chicken pieces coated in marinade until golden brown on medium heat.
6. Next create the thickener for your sauce. For that mix 1 tsp of cornflour and mix it in 1/4th cup of water. Leave it aside until needed.
7. In a wok heat up 2 tbsp of oil on high heat. Add the white part of green onion that you had cut earlier. Also add in chopped ginger and garlic. Stir for 2 - 3 mins. Then add the onion and capsicum. Toss it and leave for a couple of mins. 
8. Add the thickener to the vegetables. Also add soy sauce, salt, sugar to balance the flavor and lots of black pepper. Stir it and reduce it till half.
9. Now turn the flame off and leave your sauce for 5 min for the steam to pass. (This is important or else if you add the chicken when the sauce is very hot, the chicken will become soggy and will not be crispy) Finally add the chicken which we had fried earlier and toss it well. 
10. Garnish it with the green part of the spring onion. Serve with fried rice.

FRIED RICE:

What you need:

1. Rice 1 cup
2. Chicken fillet (cut in small cubes)
3. Carrot 1 large
4. Capsicum 2 medium
5. Cabbage small 
6. Soy Sauce 1 tbsp
7. Vinegar 1 tbsp
8. Hot sauce 1 tbsp
9. Red chilli flakes 1 tsp
10. Black pepper 1/2 tsp
11. Chinese salt 1/4th tsp (optional)

METHOD

1. Boil the rice till it is almost cooked through, in salted water. Drain it.
2. While the rice is boiling, thinly slice the carrot, capsicum and the cabbage.
3. Take a wok and saute the chicken in 5 -6  tbsp of oil. Add chilli flakes and salt as per taste.
4. As the chicken is cut in small cubes it will be cooked rather quickly. At this stage add in the vegetables and saute them. 
5. After a couple of minutes add all the sauces, black pepper and Chinese salt. Toss everything together on high heat.
6. After you see that the vegetables are half done add the boiled rice. Mix everything together.
7. Cover it and leave it on very low flame for 5 to 10 minutes. 
8. Serve with the chilli chicken!  

ENJOY!

NOTE:

1. If you want a healthier version of this dish, you can shallow fry the chicken instead of dry frying it in making the chili chicken. But by doing so the chicken will not be crispy let it is when deep fried.
2. You can also serve the chilli chicken with vegetable fried rice. Just don't add the chicken and start with sauteing the vegetables. You can also add vegetable cube or chicken cube if you want to enhance the flavor. If you do use cubes, add less salt in the vegetables as the cubes already contain salt.
   
   
   PHOTO CREDIT - RJ PIXELS