Recipe for the Best Chicken with Pineapple Ever

Chicken with pineapple is a dish you may mainly know from the takeaway menu of your favorite Chinese restaurant, but this recipe from Jason Wang of the iconic Xi’an Famous Foods in New York takes it to a whole new level. Think: crispy pieces of chicken in a sweet-and-sour sauce with pineapple, bell pepper and a generous dose of nostalgia.

What started as a small takeaway spot in Flushing in 2005 has grown into a mini-empire with 18 locations in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and elsewhere. The kitchen of Xi’an Famous Foods is also home to Jason Wang’s first cookbook, in which he takes you step by step through the secrets of his dishes, including this irresistible chicken with pineapple.

Chicken with pineapple: a potluck favorite

Jason explains how this dish came about: “Our small community of Chinese expats in Michigan consisted of families from all over China. At our potlucks, a mix of American food, Chinese-American classics and traditional Chinese dishes emerged. This chicken with pineapple is the perfect example. The sweet-and-salty combination, the ketchup in the sauce (!), the crispy coating on the chicken; it is the result of cultural influences and experimenting with what you have.”

Chinese-American comfort food

Although the dish did not originate directly in the cuisine of Xi’an, where sweetness rarely takes center stage, it fits perfectly into the category of Chinese-American comfort food. “My mother picked up the recipe at a Chinese New Year potluck and gave it her own twist,” says Jason. “Every time I make this pineapple chicken, I think back to that time when we tried to make something familiar and, above all, delicious with limited resources and new ingredients.”

Why this chicken with pineapple is so delicious

Don’t expect a bland bite from a plastic container. This chicken with pineapple is wonderfully crispy thanks to a double-frying technique, perfectly balanced by the homemade sweet-and-sour sauce, fresh and spicy from ginger, garlic and bell pepper, rich in flavor thanks to ketchup, vinegar and spring onion, and of course: finished off with the addition of juicy pieces of pineapple.

Jason’s tip: “First flatten the chicken with the side of a knife; it will become more tender and absorb the marinade better.”

How to make Jason’s chicken with pineapple

• Strike the chicken breast with the flat side of a knife to tenderize it; this improves the texture and allows the seasonings to be absorbed more effectively.
• Put the pieces of chicken, 1⁄4 teaspoon salt and 1⁄4 teaspoon cooking wine in a medium bowl and mix well. In a small bowl, make a slurry with 45 g cornstarch and 3 tablespoons water. Stir in 1⁄4 teaspoon vegetable oil. In another small bowl, combine the remaining salt, remaining cooking wine, sugar, rice vinegar and ketchup and mix everything into a sweet-and-sour sauce.
• Heat 480 ml vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Meanwhile, stir the cornstarch slurry well. Wait until the oil is very hot (about 200 °C; the oil shimmers but does not smoke) and dip each piece of chicken into the cornstarch slurry. Carefully lower the pieces into the hot oil. Fry the chicken in batches and do not overcrowd the pan.
• Fry the pieces of chicken for one and a half minutes on one side; turn them over and fry the other side for another one and a half minutes. Scoop them onto a plate with a slotted spoon and continue until all the pieces are cooked. Stir the remaining cornstarch with a splash of water to make a slurry.
• Heat the oil again to 200 °C (the oil shimmers but does not smoke) and lower the pieces of chicken into the hot oil again. Fry them, in batches if necessary, for 1–2 minutes until golden brown.
• Heat the remaining vegetable oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Stir-fry the ginger and garlic for 1 minute until softened. Add the sweet-and-sour sauce and let it cook for about 2 minutes, until it thickens slightly.
• Add the bell pepper pieces and simmer everything for another 2 minutes. Add the pineapple, spring onion and fried chicken pieces and let the dish cook gently for another minute. Stir in the cornstarch slurry and cook everything for another minute, stirring constantly. Serve immediately (you have probably already snuck a taste straight from the pan).

Chicken with pineapple: nostalgia on your plate

The power of this dish lies not only in its flavor, but also in the story behind it. It is the kind of recipe that connects generations, evoking memories of family, home and eating together. And yes, the fact that it is incredibly delicious certainly helps too.

Chicken with pineapple may not be a culinary masterpiece in the classical sense, but as comfort food, this dish is in a league of its own. It is rich, fresh, crispy, juicy and proof that with a little creativity and a can of pineapple, you can make golden dishes.

Title: From the Kitchen of Xi’an Famous Foods
Author: Jason Wang and Jessica K. Chou
Price: €34,99
Publisher: Fontaine

Read also:

• Recipe: How to make delicious pineapple skewers on the barbecue
• Tongue tingles when you eat pineapple? Not with this tip!
• Everything you didn’t know you wanted to know about pineapple