Crispy Honey Chicken | How Sweet It Is

Crunchy Honey Chicken.

November 9, 2010

Chicken. It’s what’s for dinner in our house countless nights a week. I think you can agree that it can be cumbersome coming up with yet another creative chicken dinner idea, week after week.

Unless of course, you’re married to Mr. How Sweet, in which case you can eat the same chicken dinner night after night. Well, he can. I, on the other hand, would cry tears of bacon grease if that happened.

If you are anything like me, you’ve probably spent hours upon hours looking for any new chicken dish; just something that you can do differently, even using one random spice to save you from the plight of boring baked, dry, bland chicken. And maybe you even eat a few trillion cookies to quench that never-ending thirst for a fresh chicken recipe.

Or that just might be me.

See those veggies up there? Yeah. They went into this chicken dish too. They were delicious.

Actually, I’m lying – I picked them all out. But would you expect any less from me? If you’re really that concerned, Mr. How Sweet liked the them. He can vouch for the vegetables.

Speaking of veggies, last night my mom looked at me and said, “since when do you like brussels sprouts?” The look on her face was priceless. Complete and utter shock coming from the woman who only really loves corn covered in butter and green beans covered in butter and candied almonds. Then I told her that I pan-roasted them with bacon grease. Duh.

No words were spoken. She completely understood. That’s the beauty of a mother + daughter + bacon relationship.

But enough about bacon. More about chicken!

This dish was delish. Such a nice change from boring, old chicken. Even Mr. How Sweet loved the switcheroo. However, that was after he asked what was in the sauce, cringed and claimed that he “hates honey” when I told him the ingredients, then went on his merry way and ate 4 servings.

I think that means it’s good.

Crunchy Honey Chicken

serves 2+

1 pound thinly sliced, boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 egg whites

1/3 cup cornstarch (or flour – for dredging)

1 cup broccoli florets

1/2 red pepper, thinly sliced

a handful of sugar snap peas (about 3/4 cup)

1 clove garlic, minced

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1/4 cup honey

salt and pepper to taste

Prepare and slice all veggies – feel free to add whatever you would like. In 2 separate bowls, add the egg whites (lightly beaten) and the cornstarch or flour. (The cornstarch will yield a “crispier” chicken). Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add veggies with a sprinkle of salt and pepper and saute for about 5 minutes, until softened. Add in soy sauce and garlic and stir so veggies are coated, about 60 seconds. Remove from skillet and set aside in a bowl.

Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces and season with salt and pepper. Heat the same skillet (or you can use a different one, I just use the same to make it easier) over medium-high heat and add remaining olive oil. Dip chicken pieces in egg whites and then lightly dredge in cornstarch. Add to the skillet and let brown for 2-3 minutes, then flip. Continue with remaining chicken pieces, and do so in batches if needed.

Once chicken is cooked, add veggies back in the skillet. Add honey and thoroughly mix to combine. Taste and season with salt, pepper, additional honey or soy sauce. Serve with rice.