20-minute Sesame Chicken that’s “Better Than Take-Out”

Okay, so…confession time. I always order the same thing at Chinese restaurants — shrimp lo mein. I feel like that’s actually a pretty common thing, though, right?

But there are so many other classic Chinese dishes that I’ve never tried, simply because I always stick with the norm. Like, I’ve never had sesame chicken, or orange chicken, or general tsao’s chicken. Weird, right? Especially for somebody who considers herself a pretty well-rounded eater who will try anything once (well…almost anything).

Well, my boyfriend Brent’s favorite Chinese dish is sesame chicken, and I was determined to make it for him! I’ve actually re-made a lot of our favorite restaurant meals — like my Baked Chicken Chimichangas, Asian-Glazed Drumsticks, Baked Apple Pancake, and Cake Batter Ice Cream (just to name a few).

This time was a little harder, though, because I had to come up with a recipe for something that I’d never even eaten before. But I knew the basics — chicken, a sesame sauce, and rice — so I just went from there. I had Brent taste the sauce, and I added a little more of this or that, until it was finally (in his words) “perfect.”

Once I served it (after only twenty short minutes), he declared that it was the best sesame chicken he’d had in a really long time! I think that makes my experiment a success!

Sesame Chicken

(Recipe by Miranda Mowbray, Biting Life)

Ingredients (serves 4):

1 bag (~1.5 lbs) of frozen popcorn chicken

3/4 cup honey

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup ketchup

1/4 cup soy sauce

3 tbsp sesame oil

2 tbsp rice vinegar

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp salt

2 cups cooked jasmine rice

~2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (can be found in the spice aisle)

Directions:

Cook popcorn chicken according to package directions.

In a large pot, combine honey, sugar, ketchup, soy sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, ginger, and salt.

Bring sauce to a boil for 2 minutes; let sit over low heat while the chicken is cooking.

Stir cooked chicken into the sauce, coating thoroughly.

Serve over rice; sprinkle sesame seeds on top.

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