Coconut Chicken

When I made this for dinner, I had the coconut chicken, fried rice, and cream cheese rangoons.  That's a pretty good-sized meal, and my husband ate every last drop of it.  Well, despite the fact that it was a big dinner, he still ventured into the kitchen to get a snack around 9:00.  This is a routine thing.  We could eat at a buffet for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and he'd still have to snack around 9:00.  Popcorn, chips and nacho cheese, crackers and summer sausage, popcorn and m&ms, a slice of cheese, cereal, or whatever else he can get his hands on.  Is my husband the only one that scavenges through the kitchen like this on a nightly basis?  Yes? Well, I suppose it's a good thing I keep snacky snacks on hand at all times.

Now to the chicken.  I am not a huge coconut fan, but this chicken sparked my curiosity.  I love to cook Chinese food, so I gave it a whirl.  Sweet mercy!  This stuff was delicious!  I had some Thai sweet chili sauce on the side for the rangoons, but I dipped the chicken in there.  Oh, man.  The sweet/spicy combo was amazing.  It was delicious on its own, too.  I'm already looking forward to making this again.

Coconut Chicken
source: http://kidsinthesink.wordpress.com/2012/04/23/coconut-chicken/

For the chicken:
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-2 inch cubes
salt and pepper, to taste
1 c cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 c canola oil

For the sauce:
1 can (14 oz) coconut milk
3/4 c sugar
1 t cider vinegar

Preheat the canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Preheat the oven to 350.

Sprinkle some salt and pepper on the chicken cubes.  Place the beaten eggs in one bowl and the cornstarch in a quart-sized Ziplock bag.

Put the chicken cubes in the eggs and toss to coat.  Pull each piece out one at a time and shake off the excess egg.  Place in the Ziplock bag.  Once all the chicken pieces are in the bag, seal it, and shake to coat them.

Take them out one a time and place in the pre-heated skillet.  Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side just until golden brown.  It doesn't need to be cooked all the way through since it will finish cooking in the oven.

Remove the pieces from the skillet onto a paper towel-lined cookie sheet.  Let it drain for a couple minutes.  Remove the paper towel and discard.

In another bowl, combine the sauce ingredients: the coconut milk, the sugar, and the vinegar.  Stir well and pour over the chicken.  Toss gently.

Bake in the oven for an hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

After the hour, serve it alongside fried rice or white rice.

This stuff is tasty.