Directions

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  1. Mix the egg, Shaoxing rice wine and 1 tablespoon light soy sauce together
  2. Add the cubed chicken, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes
  3. Put 6 tablespoons of cornflour in a bowl and dip all the chicken pieces in until lightly coated
  4. Fry the cornflour coated chicken in a wok in a shallow layer of oil – make sure you only have one layer of chicken at a time, and it’s well spaced – you will probably need to do in batches
  5. Remove cooked chicken with a slotted spoon and place on a cooling rack lined with kitchen paper to drain any excess oil
  6. Once all the chicken is cooked, remove the wok from the heat, empty the oil and place back on the hob
  7. Mix together the chicken stock, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar and honey, and set aside
  8. Fry garlic and ginger in sesame oil until fragrant – for about 30 seconds
  9. Add stock mixture to the pan, stir on a high heat and bring to a boil
  10. Mix 2 tablespoons of cornflour with 2 tablespoons cold water, turn the heat down and add to the pan
  11. Whisk in so that there are no lumps, and continue until the sauce thickens and is sticky
  12. Add crispy chicken back to the pan and coat in the sauce
  13. Slice all vegetables into matchsticks or thin slices, and steam your bao buns according to package instructions
  14. Fill the bao buns with vegetables and the sticky lemon chicken
  15. Garnish with sesame seeds and spring onions if you wish

Top Tips

  • If you can’t get hold of Shaoxing wine, white wine vinegar can work too
  • A great way to coat all of the chicken in cornflour is to put everything in a box with a lid and shake it up! Make sure the chicken is free of excess liquid before doing this.
  • You don’t have to use fresh lemons – substitute the juice of 2 lemons with 4 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice instead
  • When frying the chicken, don’t have the heat too high, or the oil will be too hot and burn your chicken on the outside, without actually cooking it on the inside – get the oil hot on a high heat at first, and then turn down to medium when cooking
  • To check your oil is the perfect temperature, dip the end of a wooden spoon in – if little bubbles form around the handle and rise to the top, it’s ready. If no/few bubbles form, it’s not hot enough, and if it bubbles vigorously, then your oil is too hot – just turn the heat down and wait for it to cool a little before frying
  • You may need to change your oil halfway through cooking if it starts to get too cloudy and burn
  • When disposing of your oil, boil the kettle first. Once the kettle has boiled pour your hot oil (carefully) down the drain and then follow with boiling water straight after
  • Use vegetable oil instead of sesame for the sauce if you don’t have it – sesame oil really adds to the flavour though!
  • Use any vegetables you like in the bao buns – we used red cabbage, spring onions and radish – we would recommend these, and also things like white cabbage, peppers or carrots if you like