PF Chang’s Spicy Chicken

I LOVE PF Chang’s! My three favorite things to order are their lettuce wraps, crispy green beans and spicy chicken. As I’ve mentioned before, with our family size and the ages of our young kiddos, eating out has become impractical. So I’m trying to recreate our restaurant favorites right at home. This one was spot on! I did have to laugh at myself as my husband and I were sweating a bit while enjoying dinner last night. You see, I read the recipe wrong and when it said 2 teaspoons of Srirachi hot chili sauce, I thought it said 2 tablespoons. I like things on the spicy side so I did two heaping Tablespoons. Oooppps! It was still amazing but definitely not for the faint of heart 🙂

If you’re a fan of PF Chang’s Spicy Chicken you are going to LOVE this!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds Chicken Breast
2 cups Vegetable Oil, for frying
1 cup Flour
½ teaspoons Salt
¾ teaspoons Baking Soda
1 whole Egg
½ cups Milk
½ cups Water

Spicy Sauce:

2 teaspoons Vegetable Oil
2 Tablespoons Garlic, Chopped Finely
3 Tablespoons Green Onion (chopped)
1 cup Pineapple Juice
2 teaspoons (or more) Hot Chili Sauce (Sriracha – found with the Asian foods in the supermarket)
2 Tablespoons White Vinegar
4 teaspoons Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon Soy Sauce
¾ teaspoons Salt
2 Tablespoons Water
3 teaspoons Cornstarch

Directions:

Prepare the spicy sauce: heat oil, garlic and green onions over medium heat until soft. Add pineapple juice, chili sauce, vinegar, sugar, soy sauce and salt. Combine the water and cornstarch in a separate container. Mix the cornstarch/water mixture into the sauce and stir over medium-low heat until thickened. You can add more chili sauce if you want spicier spicy chicken sauce. Be sure to taste it as you go so you don’t overdo it. Reduce heat to low.

Prepare the chicken: cut the chicken breast into 1-inch cubes and season with salt. Begin heating the 2 cups vegetable oil over medium-high heat.

Prepare the batter: combine remaining ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk together. Batter should be fairly thin. Place chicken cubes in the batter to coat. Batter should be very thin on the chicken.

Once the oil is heated, reduce heat to medium and add chicken cubes a few at a time, letting the batter drip off before placing in the oil. Let them cook for 3-4 minutes and turn halfway through cooking. Cook until golden brown. Remove and drain on a paper-towel-covered plate. Repeat until all chicken is cooked.

Serve chicken over white or brown rice and cover with plenty of spicy sauce. Garnish with additional chopped green onions in desired.

Serves: 4