Korean Sweet Sesame Chicken

 

We quite liked this dish as it was sweet and tangy and nothing could go wrong with a sweet tangy sticky sauce on a fried chicken strips.  When I looked at this picture again, I realized that I forgot to garnish it with the toasted sesame seeds.  It involved some steps and the last step sort of slip past me.  Hehe...

I had tried a spicy version and I wanted to try the non-spicy version too hence this dish was made.  I also made it healthier by using chicken tenders instead of wings.  When the ginger and garlic were minced and mixed in this dark sauce, my girls won't know what they were eating and they loved the sweet and tangy sauce.  Just don't tell them what were in the sauce when they asked.  What a great way to trick them!  :D

Sauce recipe adapted from Hannaone's Korean Recipes.  I modified chicken wings to chicken tenders and the method of preparing it.  

Ingredients:

8 chicken tenders

Sesame Paste:

• 2 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds
• 1 tsp. pure sesame oil

Sauce:

• 3 Tbsp. sesame paste (above)
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. water
• 1 tsp. lime juice
• 1 Tbsp. rice wine
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small piece of ginger, minced (about 1/2 ounce)

Garnish:

• 1 scallion, chopped
• Toasted sesame seeds

Method:

1.  Cut each chicken tender lengthwise into half to make 16 strips, season the chicken strips with salt, black pepper, sesame oil and rice wine.

2.  Prepare the sesame paste.  Place sesame seeds and oil into a blender and blend into a thick paste.  I had problem with this even though I double the amount,  my blender couldn't get the job done (I would recommend a small blender or increase the amount).  I ended out adding more oil to get the blender to blend.  I think it will work better with quadruplet the amount.  Pour into a glass bottle and refrigerate. [or better yet just go buy the bottle sesame paste]

3.  Add all the sauce ingredients into a bowl, stir-well.

4.  Heat up your wok, when heated, add in oil.  Prepare a plate of cornstarch for coating the chicken tender strips.  Dip each strips into cornstarch, cover all area and slowly drop into the hot oil to pan-fry.  Pan-fry 4-5 at a time depending on the size of your wok/ pan.  Dish out when golden brown and cooked.  Set aside.

5.  Clean your wok.  Wipe dry and heat it up again.  Add the sauce mixture and let it simmer.  When bubble, add in the fried chicken strips, stir and coat each piece of strips well with the sauce and let the sauce thicken.

6.  Serve on a plate and garnish with scallion and toasted sesame seeds.