Recipe for "chicken-lemon"

NAME

     CHICKEN-LEMON - Crispy chunks  of  chicken  in  sweet  lemon
     sauce

INGREDIENTS (Serves 2-3)

     2         bell peppers, (1 green and 1 red)
     500 g     boneless chicken breast
          BATTER
     50 g      flour
     40 g      cornstarch
     2.5 ml    double-acting baking powder
     1 ml      salt
     2.5 ml    vegetable oil
          SAUCE
     1         lemon
     40 g      sugar
     12 cl     water
     5 ml      cornstarch
     10 ml     water
               sprigs of parsley

PROCEDURE

          (1)  Wash and seed the  peppers.   Cut  each  one  into
               strips 5 cmx5 mm
          (2)  Cut the boneless chicken breast into strips  1 x 8
               cm.
          (3)  Prepare the batter by mixing in a bowl the  flour,
               cornstarch,  baking  powder, salt, water, and oil.
               Stir until smooth.
          (4)  Cut half  of  the  lemon  into  thin  semicircular
               slices.   Prepare the lemon sauce by squeezing the
               juice from the other half of the lemon and combin-
               ing in a cup with the sugar and water. Stir well.
          (5)  Combine 5 ml cornstarch  and  10  ml  water  in  a
               second  cup.  This  mixture  will be used later to
               thicken the lemon sauce.
          (6)  Dip each piece of chicken in the  batter  and  let
               the excess drip back into the bowl.
          (7)  Deep fry the chicken in small batches.  It is best
               to  use an electric deep fryer, but if this is not
               available, heat 1 liter of vegetable oil in a  wok
               or  deep pan until it is very hot.  Then add about
               5 pieces of chicken at a time to the oil and cook,
               covered,  for  about  5  minutes or until a golden
               brown crust forms.  Check once a minute to see  if
               the  pieces  are  sticking  together,  and  if so,
               separate them.  After each batch is finished,  set
               aside  on  a  paper  towel to drain off the excess
               oil.
          (8)  Cook the lemon sauce by  pouring  the  lemon-sugar
               mixture  into  a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add
               the cornstarch-water mixture and stir until thick-
               ened.
          (9)  To please the eye as well as the  palate,  mix  up
               the  chicken and colored pepper pieces and pile on
               a plate.  Top with sprigs of parsley and place the
               lemon slices around the outside of the plate.  Put
               the hot lemon sauce in a cup so  that  people  can
               pour  it over their chicken just before eating, to
               keep it crispy.

NOTES

     Serve with rice. Don't forget to start the rice so  that  it
     will be done at the same time as the chicken.
      A nice-looking dish for  company.  The  deep-fried  chicken
     pieces  can  also  be served as party snacks instead of junk
     food.

RATING

     Difficulty: With an electric deep fryer, easy; without  one,
     moderate.   Time: 45 minutes.  Precision: Measure the batter
     ingredients.

CONTRIBUTOR

     Andy Tanenbaum
     Dept. of Math and Computer Sci., Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, HOLLAND
     ast@cs.vu.nl   seismo!mcvax!cs.vu.nl!ast