“Comfort Food for the Mind, Body, and Soul”: FRIED RICE and BAKED SWEET N SOUR CHICKEN

 By Sharon Fox

 
FRIED RICE
 
3 cups cooked white rice (day old or leftover rice works best!)
3 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 cup frozen peas and carrots (thawed)…
1 small onion, chopped
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/4 cup soy sauce
 
On medium high heat, heat the oil in a large skillet or wok. Add the peas/carrots mix, onion and garlic. Stir fry until tender. Lower the heat to medium low and push the mixture off to one side, then pour your eggs on the other side of skillet and stir fry until scrambled. Now add the rice and soy sauce and blend all together well. Stir fry until thoroughly heated! 
 
 
BAKED SWEET N SOUR 
CHICKEN
 
The chicken coating:
3-4 boneless chicken breasts
salt + pepper 
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup canola oil
  
The sweet and sour sauce:
 
3/4 cup sugar
4 tbsp. ketchup
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. garlic salt
 
Start by preheating your oven to 325 degrees. Rinse your chicken breasts in water and then cut into cubes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Dip chicken into the cornstarch to coat then dip into the eggs. Heat your 1/4 cup oil in a large skillet and cook your chicken until browned but not cooked through. Place the chicken in a 9×13 greased baking dish. Mix all of your sweet and sour sauce ingredients in a bowl with a whisk and then pour evenly over the chicken. Bake for one hour and during the baking process you will need to turn the chicken every 15 minutes.
 
**You could really play around with this rice! Try adding some diced ham, beef, chicken, shrimp, bacon, or green onion!
Sharon Fox is the author of COMFORT FOOD FOR THE MIND, BODY, AND SOUL and she has a series of eBooks for Kindle. 
She’s also Food Editor for several online magazines and host of a new TV show based in Atlanta, GA “The 
Healthy Living Show”. 
 
For more information please visit her website:
 
Please log on to  www.tncp.net or www.elementsofanewday.com for more recipes.
 
This was published in the December 29, 2013 – January 11, 2014 edition.