House of Nanking's World Famous Sesame Chicken

Sesake chicken with sweet potatoes

Category
Dinner
Cuisine
American
Serves
4-6
Time
40 minutes
From
House of Nanking

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This is a guess at the so-called World Famous Sesame Chicken from The House of Nanking in San Francisco. We try to go there every time we visit San Francisco

Ingredients

For the Chicken

  • 1 lb (450g) chicken breast or boneless chicken thighs
  • 2 cloves garlic, grated
  • 1.5 tsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • Black pepper, to taste
  • 3/8 tsp baking soda
  • 1 egg
  • 3 tbsp sweet potato starch (plus 1 cup for coating)
  • Oil, for deep frying

For the Sauce

  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1.5 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp ketchup
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 2 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch (mixed with 2 tbsp water)

For the Vegetables and Garnish

  • 1 medium sweet potato, cut into thin strips or cubes
  • 1 cup chayote, sliced (or substitute with broccoli or snap peas)
  • Diced scallions for garnish

Instructions

Preparing the Chicken and Vegetables

  1. Marinate the Chicken: Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. In a bowl, mix the chicken with garlic, soy sauce, salt, black pepper, baking soda, and egg white. Add 1/2 tablespoon of sweet potato starch and mix well. Let it marinate for about 40 minutes.
  2. Coat the Chicken: After marinating, coat the chicken pieces with sweet potato starch. Shake off any excess starch and let them rest for 15 minutes before frying.
  3. Prepare Sweet Potatoes: While the chicken is marinating, heat oil in a separate pan and fry the sweet potato strips until golden brown and crispy. Remove and drain on paper towels.
  4. Fry the Chicken: Heat oil in a deep pan to 380°F (193°C). Fry the chicken in batches for about 4 minutes until lightly golden. Remove and let rest for 15 minutes. For extra crunchiness, double fry each batch for an additional 3 minutes until golden brown.

Making the Sauce

  1. In a large bowl, combine brown sugar, honey, soy sauce, ketchup, water, rice vinegar, and cornstarch mixture. Whisk until smooth.
  2. Pour this sauce into a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Stir continuously until the sauce thickens.
  3. Add the fried chicken back into the wok along with sesame oil and toasted sesame seeds. Toss everything together until well coated in the sauce.

Adding Vegetables and Serving

  1. In the last few minutes of cooking, add sliced chayote to the wok to lightly steam it while mixing with the chicken and sauce.
  2. Serve hot over white rice, topped with crispy sweet potatoes and garnished with diced scallions.

Notes

  • You should be able to cook the chicken in an air fryer
  • I would cook the sweet potatoes in the oven, especially for larger groups
  • Maybe buy some pre-made coated chicken nuggets that can be baked instead of fried?!