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How to Cook a Chinese Takeaway Meal for Two
This will be one epic mealtime!
So for the menu this evening we have: Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls, Plain Chow Mein, Beef and Mushrooms, Chicken and Green Pepper with Black Bean Sauce!
Time: Prep 30 mins / Cooking 30 mins
Difficulty: Average
Mild
Ingredients
In order of use:
Note: To make it easier, staple ingredients like salt, sugar, oil, we will note in the instructions rather than in the list below.
- 2 chicken breasts
- 200g beansprouts
- 1 spring onion
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 8 mushrooms
- 200ml chicken stock
- 1 green pepper
- 2 tbsp cornflour mixture
- 900ml vegetable oil
- 300g beef strips
- 2 tsp fermented black beans
For sweet and sour sauce:
- 35g vinegar
- 55g granulated sugar
- 25g ketchup
- 5g tomato puree
- 10g Worcester sauce
For the chicken balls batter:
- 100g self-raising flour
- 100ml cold water
Equipment needed: 1 x 9 inch saucepan, 1 x small pan, 1 x frying pan / wok
Preparation
1Prep the chicken breasts.
- With 1 of them, cut into 8 strips for the chicken balls. Season with 1/2 tsp salt and a sprinkle of white pepper. Then coat pieces with 1 tbsp self-raising flour.
- Cut the other breast into larger strips. Add 1 tsp cornflour, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp soy sauce and 1/2 tsp vegetable oil and mix.
Set both chicken strips aside separately.
2Prep the vegetables.
- Wash and drain 200g beansprouts
- Slice spring onion thinly
- Cut 1 onion into chunks
- Dice 2 garlic cloves
- Quarter 8 mushrooms
- Prepare 200ml chicken stock
- Cut 1 green pepper into chunks
- Prepare 2 tbsp cornflour mixture by mixing 2 tbsp cornflour with 4 tbsp water
3Make the sweet and sour sauce:
- Add vinegar and sugar into pan and heat on low heat until sugar dissolves
- Add ketchup, puree and worcester sauce and mix. Once dissolved in, the sauce is ready, set aside.
4Heat up 900ml vegetable oil on medium-high heat for a 9 inch saucepan, you want about 1 inch of oil at the bottom of the pan.
5Cook the meat.
- Heat 1 tbsp oil in wok on high heat. Fry chicken strips (the larger strips, not the ones for the chicken balls) for 1.5 minutes and set aside.
- Using same wok, fry beef strips for 3 minutes and set aside.
Ready? Let's cook!
1Make the chicken ball batter. Add the self-raising flour and the salt together. Mix 100g of cold water into the flour. Let the mixture rest for 5-10 minutes as it will rise a little and become a smoother batter. Add 1/2 teaspoon of vegetable oil into the mix to make it shiny.
2Fry the Chicken Balls:
- Turn pan of oil to low heat. One chicken strip at a time, place a chicken strip into the batter and coat it. Then put it in to the oil. Repeat this step for the other strips.
- Fry the balls for about 4 minutes until the batter is golden. If the balls are not floating after 4 minutes, leave it for an extra 1-2 minutes. Tip: If you find your batter browning too fast then add more oil to cool it down. Tip: when the balls float it generally means that the chicken is cooked. Use a slotted spoon to take the balls out and drain on kitchen towel.
3Cook the Plain Chow Mein:
- Clean wok, heat 1 tbsp oil on high heat until hot.
- Fry beansprouts and noodles for 4 minutes.
- Add salt, sesame oil and soy sauce to taste, mix in and fry for another 1 minute.
- Serve on plate with spring onions on top.
4Cook the Beef and Mushrooms:
- Heat 1 tbsp oil on high heat until hot.
- Add 1/2 the onions and 1 diced garlic clove and fry for 1 minute, be careful not to burn the garlic.
- Next add in the mushrooms and beef and fry for 2 minutes.
- Pour in one ladle of chicken stock and leave for 2 minutes or until it is starting to boil.
- Then gradually add the 2 tablespoons of cornflour mixture. Once this mixture is well incorporated the sauce should thicken.
- Add 1 tsp soy sauce, 1 tsp oyster sauce, salt to taste and serve.
5Cook the Chicken and Green Pepper with Black Bean Sauce:
- Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil on high heat in wok until hot.
- Fry 1/2 the onions and the green peppers for 1 minute.
- Add 1 diced garlic clove and the fermented black beans and fry for 30 seconds.
- Add the chicken strips (be careful you don’t add the juice that has come out of it) and fry for 1 minute.
- Add in 2 tbsp water, 1/2 tsp sugar 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste) and mix in.
- Mix together the cornflour mixture and slowly pour in a little at a time. Once the sauce thickens stop adding. If you’ve added too much and the sauce is too thick, add a little water back in to loosen it.
- Add 1 tsp soy sauce, or to taste, and fry for another 30 seconds.
Serve.
Equipment needed: 1 x 9 inch saucepan, 1 x small pan, 1 x frying pan / wok