I’m always on the hunt for healthy recipe ideas for my family. I grew up loving fried chicken and I’ve always had a sweet tooth. But let’s face it; anything fried is just not good for you. Rather than sacrifice taste, I decided to whip up a healthy sweet and sour chicken recipe.
It was a perfect way to combine some of my favorite flavors along with some veggies. Like most kids, Princess and O are picky eaters. But after having this yummy meal, they were hooked.
Ingredients:
4 Boneless skinless chicken breast chopped
1 teaspoon chopped garlic or garlic powder
1 green or yellow bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
1 small onion
1/4 ketchup
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/3 cornstarch
3/4 cup cane sugar
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp oil
Directions:
- Make the sweet and sour sauce by combining soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, garlic, and ketchup with a little cornstarch in a pan and cook under medium until the sauce becomes thick.
- Shake or mix chicken with cornstarch until fully coated.
- In a separate pan add olive oil and cook chicken until thoroughly cooked and golden brown on each side.
- Add chopped onions and peppers. Cook for an additional five minutes (I like my veggies aldente because I like the crunch and I don’t want to get rid of the enzymes).
- Pour in the sweet and sour sauce.
The first time I made this my hubby said, “make sure you add this to the rotation.” The kids also enjoyed every bit of it including the onions and peppers.
If you have picky eaters, especially those who refuse to eat veggies, adding the sweet and sour sauce will change their minds.
Also, feel free to adjust recipe to fit your taste buds. For instance, you can add more veggies or swap out chicken for shrimp. You can also double sweet and sour sauce recipe for added flavor. But, please note that doubling the sauce will make it less healthy.
Since I don’t make a habit out of frying, using a little olive oil in a pan is a lot better than deep frying. I also only use organic and gluten free ingredients whenever possible.
Have you ever tried making sweet and sour chicken? How do you get you kids to eat veggies?