This weekend ended up being a bit busier than I expected. Instead of cooking on Friday, I chose to make dinner on Saturday. I once again I chose to use items in the pantry and give the wallet a little reprieve from the Ina Garten recipes. But, do not worry! An Ina recipe review will be posted on the blog later in the week!

This is a Sweet and Sour Chicken recipe that I’ve been making for a few years now. It’s also really easy since it uses store-bought ingredients. It stems from when I was in college and didn’t have the time or the patience to make everything myself. Plus, grocery stores have come a long way when it comes to the international food aisle. There are now some great options in there!

The recipe is below and I hope you’ll give it a try!

Easy Sweet & Sour Chicken

Servings: About 6 Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 30 Minutes Difficulty: Beginner

I’ve been making this recipe for years. I’ve improved upon it each time and sometimes when I make it I still change it up a little. Feel free to use this recipe as a starting point for your own creations!

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 lbs. chicken tenderloins
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil or canola oil
• 1-8 ounce can of sliced bamboo shoots, drained
• 1-14 ounce can bean sprouts, drained
• Two bottles of store-bought Sweet & Sour Sauce (I used ShopRite brand, but La Choy is great, too!)
• Two bags of frozen Asian stir fry medley (Steam-in-bag kind is what I used)
• Rice of your choice for 6 servings

Directions

1. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Place into a large bowl and add the flour. Use a spoon to toss to coat the chicken pieces.
2. Bring a pot of water to a boil to cook the rice. When ready, cook the rice according to the package directions.
3. Preheat a large skillet with the oil in the bottom of the pan over medium high heat.
4. Add the chicken and begin to cook. Don’t worry if the chicken pieces are stuck together due to the flour. They will eventually break up, but may need a little nudge to do so.
5. Once the chicken is almost cooked through, add the bamboo shoots and bean sprouts. Cook for two minutes.
6. Add both bottles of sweet and sour sauce. Reduce heat to medium-low.
7. Cook the bags of frozen vegetables in the microwave according to the package directions. Only cook one bag at time! Keep the finished bag on the counter, open to let the steam escape while the second bag cooks. Once they are both cooked, add the contents of both bags to the chicken dish.
8. Cook for another minute or two.
9. When ready to serve, spoon a portion of rice into the bottom of the bowl and top with a portion of the sweet and sour chicken.

Like I said, I’m still working on this recipe each time I go to make it. This is the current iteration. I wanted to post this so that down the road, I can most a better version and see how the recipe itself evolved.

Did you make this recipe? What did you think of it? Do you have suggestions? Let me know in the comments!