About the Recipe
After several iterations and attempts to make a good crispy batter for “anything”, the magic combination of ingredients came out of the Food Lab and made it into my cookbook and onto this blog. Follow the directions in this recipe to make your very own sweet and sour chicken balls that are just as good, or better, than what you would get from a Chinese food restaurant.
Ingredients
Raw chicken breasts (in the quantity you desire)
Batter (Click on the link below for a great batter recipe)
Oil for frying
Preparation
Start by making the Crispy General Purpose Batter.
Depending on how many chicken balls you want to make, you may not need a whole batch of batter. You can cut the recipe in half if you are making a small quantity.
Dice the chicken breast(s) into pieces of whatever size you desire.
In general, pieces for regular chicken balls would be about ¾ of an inch cubed.
The hardest part about making chicken balls is the process of coating the chicken pieces with batter and dropping them into the oil. There is an art to this and you may have to practice a bit to be able to make nicely rounded chicken balls. However, they will taste great regardless of how they are shaped.
The thickness of the batter is one of the key factors. The batter cannot be too thin or the chicken balls will not puff up enough.
Pour cooking oil into a medium to large pot, depending on how many chicken balls you are making.
The amount of oil you need depends on the size of the pot. There should be a sufficient amount of oil to completely immerse the chicken balls. Generally, about 3 inches of oil will do.
Set the temperature between medium and medium high.
After the oil begins to heat, drop a bit of batter into it to serve as a temperature gauge.
Once the test batter has browned, you can begin adding battered chicken.
I found that the best way to drop the chicken is using two bamboo skewers.
Batter the piece of chicken and try to hold it on 2 sides as you introduce them to the oil.
You can use one skewer to push the chicken off the other and slowly introduce it to the oil. This can be done by hand, with a fork, with a spoon or as I have depicted below. Whatever method you feel most comfortable with. With a bit of practice, you will be able to make good looking chicken balls.
Fry the chicken balls until they are golden brown and then set them on a paper towel or rack.
A wire skimmer works well for scooping out the cooked chicken balls.
Serve with a lemon wedge or with Sweet & Sour Sauce. Click on the link below for the recipe.
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