Why order take out when you can make your own Chinese lemon chicken at home? There are a few different versions of lemon chicken out there, all coming from different countries. Probably the most popular type of lemon chicken would be baked in the oven. We all know baked lemon chicken is great but here is the Chinese version – just like take out or at the buffets. The Chinese version varies greatly from that of other cultures. Like most types of Chinese chicken, the chicken is first to cut into small chunks, battered, and then deeply fried and covered with a sweet lemon sauce. I do have a confession to make, I used yellow food coloring to get the sauce that amazing bright yellow color. If you have some yellow food coloring on hand, just add a drop or two into the sauce before you heat it. This recipe goes great served with rice and broccoli. Enjoy.
Chinese Lemon Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 1/2lbs boneless-skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1” cubes)
Marinade- - 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
Batter- - 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 pinch white pepper
- oil (for frying)
Sauce- - 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 3 slices of lemon (peeled)
- 2 tablespoons oil
- yellow food coloring (optional)
Instructions
- Place cut chicken breast pieces into a bowl and mix with 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and a ½ teaspoon of salt. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- To make the batter – beat 2 large eggs with a ¼ cup of cornstarch, a pinch of white pepper and baking powder. Coat the chicken with the batter.
- Heat deep fryer to 350 degrees and deep-fry in batches until chicken is fully cooked. Drain on paper towels and set aside. You can also cook the chicken using a wok if you don’t have a deep fryer.
- Now, to make the lemon sauce – combine 1/3 cup of sugar, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, 1 cup chicken broth, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and ¾ teaspoon salt (if using food coloring you can add it now). Mix until well combined and add 3 slices of lemon to the sauce mixture.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in your wok and stir in the lemon sauce mixture and heat until well mixed and the sauce becomes clear. Remove lemon slices and pour the sauce over the chicken and mix. Best served with rice and broccoli.
Janice
Sunday 1st of March 2015
Thanks for the lemon sauce recipe. We had it this evening for dinner with rice and frozen chicken tenders I baked in the oven. To suit our taste, I increased the sugar and added some lemon zest; really good.
Shirley
Wednesday 23rd of July 2014
how long does it take to complete the whole dish?
Bobby
Thursday 24th of July 2014
Not sure exactly, sorry. I would say 45 minutes to an hour but that is just a guess.
Robin
Tuesday 4th of February 2014
We love this recipe so much. I can't believe I haven't commented yet. We found it a few years ago and make it several times a year. Thanks for a wonderful recipe that is as good if not better than take out!
Sara
Tuesday 28th of January 2014
Today was cheat day and I was feeling like chinese food - on a budget ! This recipe was AMAZING. I loved how easy it was, I do not own a fryer but I pan fried the chicken in avocado oil and it was simply delicious. Even better than alot of restaurants... I will DEFINITELY cook this one again, thank you !!!
Kayzzy
Tuesday 26th of November 2013
@dayna - You can use flour instead of cornstarch. I know I'm late, but I hope I can help someone else.
I always use flour instead of cornstarch and it's still delicious.
Anyway, I'm making this tonight, I found the recipe on Pinterest :).