Taken from “Everyday Cooking” published by Hinkler Books
Serves 6
Last night just happened to be one of those nights when I actually chose to challenge myself quite unnecessarily. I mean, why would someone go through all that stress of rushing home from work, going to the shops to pick up some missing ingredients, cook like CRAZY knowing there’s only less than an hour to do it, and then rush off to an intense 1-hour session of Zumba on a Thursday night. I didn’t think it was possible – but thankfully this recipe has proven itself to be very suitable for “everyday cooking”. Yes, even on a busy weeknight. Besides, I’ve always wanted to see what I can do if I was put to a “pressure test” so the time constraints I’ve put on myself became quite rewarding by the end of it, knowing I’ve successfully completed my task.
This dish is pretty much a “Sweet and Sour” dish with chicken. I suppose “Hawaiian” sounds a bit fancier, and it does deserve the right to be called that simple because of the amount of pineapple in this dish. I love pineapples, so I can’t complain. I do have a few tips towards the end of this post, so feel free to use those tips because my end result was a delicious, sweet and sour chicken pot I finally got to enjoy at approx. 9.15pm last night as soon as I got home from Zumba :)
Ingredients:
1.5 kg chicken casserole pieces
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp paprika
2 tbsp oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
4 tbsp water
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
2 tsp sweet chilli sauce
4 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 medium fresh pineapple, peeled and diced
(Tip: Or you can use a can of pineapple pieces)
1 green capsicum, seeded and cut into thin strips
1 red capsicum, seeded and cut into thin strips
1 tbsp rum (optional)
1 1/2 tbsp cornflour, mixed with 1/2 cup cold water
Steamed white rice to serve
Method:
- Season the chicken pieces with salt, pepper and paprika. Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add chicken pieces a few at a time and brown on all sides. Remove to a plate lined with kitchen paper as they brown. Drain the oil from the saucepan.
- Add the onion and garlic to the saucepan and cook, stirring for 2 minutes. Return the chicken to the saucepan. In a bowl, combine the water, worcestershire sauce, sweet chilli sauce, vinegar and brown sugar and pour over the chicken. Add the pineapple pieces and capsicums. Simmer for 30-35 minutes (or less if you were in a hurry like I was!) until chicken is tender.
- Add the rum to the chicken. Blend the cornflour and water together. Add the cornflour mixture to the chicken and stir through. Allow to simmer until sauce thickens. Increase the heat until it boils then turn off heat. Serve with steamed white rice.
Tip: Always taste before serving. I wasn’t quite happy with the initial taste and color of the sauce, so I added another teaspoon of paprika and 2 tbsp of Maggi Hot Chilli Sauce. The end result, to me, was perfect!
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