Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls
Ingredients
Marinade
- 750g pork shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes, trim fat
- or 750g boneless skinless chicken thigh, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon white pepper
Coating
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup cornflour
- 1 cup semolina or polenta
- Pinch of salt and white pepper
- Vegetable oil for frying (1-2 inches deep)
Sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 6 tablespoons tomato ketchup
- 4 tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons cornflour mixed with 2 tablespoons water
- 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
- 2 red bell peppers, roughly chopped
- 300g pineapple chunks
- 2 medium carrots, sliced
Preparation
In a medium-sized bowl, add the soy sauce, sugar, salt, and pepper to the meat, ensure it is well coated, and leave to marinate at room temperature.
In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and in a separate bowl, mix together the cornflour, semolina or polenta, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
Heat the oil to medium heat and prepare a cooling rack lined with paper towels for the fried pieces.
Fry the meat in batches: dip each batch in the egg, roll in the flour mixture, tap off excess, and use tongs to lower into hot oil. Fry for 2 minutes on each side until golden brown, then remove with tongs and place on paper towels. Repeat with all pieces and remove oil from heat.
Prepare the sauce by adding all sauce ingredients to a separate bowl, mix well, and set aside.
In a clean wok, add a little oil and heat to high. Fry the pineapple for 1-2 minutes to caramelize, then remove and set aside. Do the same with the pepper and carrot chunks, then remove and set aside.
Add the sauce mixture to the wok and stir until it thickens and becomes sticky. Add the fried meat pieces, pineapple, and peppers, mix well to coat everything with the sauce, and heat through for a few minutes.
