Friday night sticky lemon chicken

• servings: 4 servings
• active time: 10 minutes
• total time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

300g jasmine rice*

1 large egg*

2 teaspoons soy sauce

400g skinless chicken breast, cut into strips or chunks

¼ cup cornflour

Sticky lemon sauce:

1 juicy lemon, juice and rind

½ cup water

2 teaspoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons honey

2 teaspoons oil

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped or 1 ½ teaspoons crushed garlic

2 teaspoons cornflour mixed with 2 tablespoons water

Ginger stir-fried veges:

1 tablespoon oil

20g ginger, thinly sliced or grated or 1 tablespoon crushed ginger

1 large onion, thinly sliced

300g frozen green beans*, defrosted

2 large carrots, thinly sliced

1 broccoli, florets and stalks roughly chopped

300g mushrooms, sliced

Directions

Cook rice according to packet instructions. Beat egg and soy sauce together in a large bowl, add chicken, gently mix to coat. Cover and set aside to marinate.

Heat oven to 200oC bake or 180oC fan bake and prepare a baking tray by greasing it with oil.

Once the oven is hot, dip and coat chicken pieces in cornflour, shake off any excess flour and place on the baking tray in a single layer. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until cooked through and slightly browned.

Sticky lemon sauce

Combine the lemon juice, water, soy sauce and honey in a bowl. Heat oil in a saucepan on the stove over medium high heat, add garlic and fry for a few seconds until golden. Carefully pour the lemon mixture into the saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer. Test taste, adding more seasoning ingredients if needed. While stirring, gradually pour in the  cornflour mix and continue stirring until thickened. Turn off heat and set aside.

Ginger stir fried veges

Heat oil in a large frying pan or wok over high heat, sauté onion and cook until slightly softened, add ginger and fry for 1-2 minutes or until fragrant. Add remaining veges and stir fry until cooked to your liking.

To serve

Place cooked chicken in a large bowl and pour the sauce over top, toss to coat. Serve sticky lemon chicken with rice and ginger stir fried veges.

Cooking tips:

The chicken can also be shallow fried if desired.

Adapt it:

You can use chicken thighs, or firm tofu, or tempeh as protein alternatives.

A frozen stir fry vege mix can be used to replace the mushrooms, carrots and broccoli if preferred.

Kid friendly alternatives:

Leave ginger out if needed.

Leftover tips:

Reheat for lunch the next day.

Any leftover cooked rice can also be frozen and reheated thoroughly before serving or cooked into another dish such fried rice or rice pudding.