Sweet and Sour Chicken and Noodles
Tender rice noodles and moist chicken, glazed with a sweet/salty, shimmering sauce. And there are little nuggets of preserved fruit in every bite! This is one of my favorite dishes on earth, and it’s super easy to prepare.
Traditional sweet and sour sauce is usually loaded with brown sugar. I find brown sugar cloyingly sweet when it’s the base of a savory sauce. That’s why I used apricot preserves instead. The fruity jam not only adds sweetness, it adds little nuggets of chewy-sweet apricot. You can’t get that from brown sugar! Don’t have apricot preserves? No problem, orange marmalade works too. Definitely try one or the other, trust me!
This gluten-free dish can also be made vegan. Simply leave the chicken out! And feel free to add your favorite vegetables – snow peas, green peas, and broccoli would all make excellent additions. For added protein, add chunks of tofu, peanuts, and/or cashews.
This is a terrific way to use leftover cooked chicken from a previous meal. If you don’t have leftover chicken, you can buy pre-cooked chicken at the grocery store. Grilled chicken strips add great flavor. You can also use rotisserie chicken meat. If you want to cook raw chicken from scratch, either roast chicken breasts (or tenders) in a 400 degree oven for 15 to 25 minutes (until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees), or poach the chicken in gently boiling water for 8 to 12 minutes, until cooked through.
Sweet and Sour Chicken and Noodles
Ingredients
- 12 ounces rice noodles, also called pad Thai noodles
- 2 cups sugar snap peas, ends trimmed
- 1 cup apricot preserves, or orange marmalade
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon mirin, Japanese rice wine
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 4 cups cubed cooked chicken
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Equipment
Instructions
- Cook the noodles in a large pot of boiling water for 4 minutes, adding the sugar snap peas for the last minute of cooking. Drain and set aside.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet or saucepan, combine the apricot preserves (or orange marmalade), soy sauce, mirin, and sesame oil. Set the pan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Add the chicken and cook for 1 to 2 minutes to heat through. Fold in the noodles, snow peas, and fresh cilantro.
- Season to taste with salt and black pepper and serve.