BETTER THAN TAKEOUT - Lemon Chicken Recipe

As one of the popular take-out dishes, crispy lemon chicken is breaded, then fried, and coated with a glossy sauce; it tastes lemony, savory, and tangy. Usually, restaurants will deep fry the chicken. However, cooking it at home, you can try shallow fry with less oil and use my trick to get the same crispy result.

INGREDIENTS
To marinate the chicken
1 lb (450g) of chicken breast or boneless chicken thigh
1 tbsp of minced garlic
1 tsp of ginger
1.5 tsp of Chinese cooking wine

For the sauce
3 tbsp of water + 1 tbsp of cornstarch
3.5 tbsp of lemon juice
1 tbsp of Lemon zest

Others:
1 egg
1 cup of oil to shallow fry
Diced scallion as garnish

INSTRUCTIONS
Cut the boneless chicken breast or thigh into big strips, then slice into bite-size pieces.

Marinate the chicken with minced garlic, minced ginger, soy sauce, and black pepper to taste. Mix thoroughly and rest it for 20 minutes.

While waiting, combine the sauce ingredients in a bowl and mix well. This sauce is versatile; it works great with other proteins such as shrimp, pork, and beef.

Tip No 1 for meal prepping: This amount is enough to pair with 1 lb of meat. You can make multiple batches and keep them in the freezer for up to six months. The sauce will not solidify in the freezer due to the high sugar and salt content, so you can use it anytime without defrosting.

The next step is to bread the chicken. Combine 2/3 cups of cornstarch and 2/3 cups of all-purpose in a large zip lock bag, then shake well. Cornstarch is the key to making the chicken crispy. The breading will come out doughy if you use 100% all-purpose flour.

Add the marinated chicken into the bag and shake until well-coated. Use a sieve to get rid of the excess flour and transfer the chicken into a bowl.

Crack one egg into the chicken and mix thoroughly. Put the chicken back into the bag and shake to coat it twice because a thicker breading will protect the breast meat from drying out.

Use a sieve to get rid of the excess flour again. Let the chicken rest on the side for 15 minutes so the flour can have enough time to bond together, and it will fall off less during the frying.

Meanwhile, heat 2/3 cups of oil to 400 F. Shallow frying uses less oil than deep-frying. Since the food is only partly submerged, it must be flipped over partway through the cooking process. The bigger the item is, the lower the frying temperature should be. These chicken bites are small, so we start with 400 F.

Fry the chicken in two batches over medium-high heat for a couple of minutes on each side or until both sides are golden brown. Before you fry the second batch, remove the flour crumbs from the oil using a fine sieve.

Tip No.2 for meal prepping - freeze the chicken after frying for 5-6 months. Whenever you want to eat them again, heat them in an air fryer (400 F for 8-10 minutes), or an oven ( 450 F for 12-14 minutes). Then coat it with the sauce, and you have your quick delicious dinner ready.

Remove the chicken to the side and pour out most of the oil from the wok. Then pour in the sauce and stir over medium heat for a few minutes or until it thickens.

Introduce the chicken to the wok with 1.5 tbsp of toasted sesame seeds. Toss everything until the chicken is coated with the sauce, and serve with white rice. Make sure everybody is ready to eat and do the last step to combine the chicken with the sauce. The longer you let it sit before serving, the less crispy it will be.

[hansdampf]

Yesterday I cooked it up, and it really tastes wonderful. I can definitely recommend this. For my wife and me, the amount is enough to have dinner 2x.

[reginaschwartz]

I made this tonight for dinner! It was delicious, I love this girl. For decades I never tried to cook Chinese food because I thought it was super hard to make, not with Mandy. Love you Mandy, you are the best.

[KMICHAELODONOVAN]

This young lady is the best teacher for Chinese cooking from A to Z.

[dunderwood]

I've tried several of this Chef's recipes that turned out better than the best NYC restaurants had to offer. Making this this weekend 🤪. Thank you.
Bless up from Brooklyn NY

[knightsofneeech]

Mandy, you have grown in maturity and content, professionalism, everything! I've been enjoying your recipes for many years. My favorite is still Hakka style tofu. But I love your potstickers as well as this. Thank you for continuing to bring us great content and I'm good to help on Patreon. You are wonderful!

[elishaanderson]

Oh wow... amazing! Love Mandy and how she so clearly explains cooking theory while presenting a wonderful beginner dish to Cantonese cooking! Chef's kiss to you Mandy!

[arejetko]

Another great recipe, Mandy. Love the shallow fry option and the lemon sauce!

[pauletteriddle]

I made this tonight! My whole family loved it. Just the right amount of tart and sweet. The breading was perfect! Thank you!

[jnicholsonjr]

A few modifications set this off for me. I marinated the chicken overnight before frying. For the sauce I used lemon juice, orange juice, and tangerine peel to add some complexity to the flavor profile. Also fried broccoli before the sauce step and tossed that with the chicken. Superb.

[katrinaarthurs]

Thanks Mandy,
I was looking for this recipe last week. I like your recipes so I am glad to have it now.

[andyb]

Made it tonight and its got to be one of the best things ive ever made. Thank you so much.

[daniellebarker]

I Love lemon and this looks especially tasty!! Thank you again, Mandy.

[ellove]

The recipe to try is a YES!! I love your instructions because you never over complicate them.

[XanderWhat]

How do you keep reading my mind and posting exactly what I'm in the mood for?

[vicwillo]

I made your Crispy Lemon Chicken for our dinner yesterday. It was FABULOUS! Absolutely delicious and easy to do. Thanks so much for this one.

[davidf]

This was my first recipe from your channel and the lemon chicken is the best I've ever tasted - It was perfect - moist, crispy and very tasty. Thank you!
Looking forward to trying some of your other recipes.

[YK-]

First tip when frying for a crispy result, is frying two or even three times. The difference is huge. Thank you for the delicious recipe!

[Studio]

Hi Mandy, I made this tonight according to your recipe and it turned out PERFECTLY! Crispy and delicious, wonderful breading. The shallow fry worked perfectly (in batches) even with my western pan. Your recipe *tastes* very complex, but with your instructions I found the process simple. Thank you!

[ray_mck]

I made this tonight. It is really tasty -- just the right punch of sour to balance the sweet and salty. It was a hit with the family. It's not something I will make extremely often because it *is* very sweet like a lot of Americanized Chinese take-out food. It will stay in my rotation, though, because it does taste so good, and is very easy to prepare! Thank you Mandy for making me and my family happy!

[ReneesatItAgain]

Ooooo, can't wait to try this one!! Love the 'low level oil but still crispy' idea!! Thank you!!! Always waiting for more of your recipes!!! Thank you!!!