Oven Baked Sesame Chicken

 

I am always bookmarking recipes on Instagram.  I have a whole folder of saved videos/recipes. This recipe I am sharing with you today was adapted from a reel I saw on IG by Food, Kids and Sleep.  It looked really easy to make as well as incredibly delicious!

I love Asian flavors.  It was not something we ate much of when I was growing up. In fact I don't remember us eating it at all. I think I had my first Chinese meal when I was in my late teens at a local Chinese Restaurant.  One of my boyfriends had taken me out for supper.

 

 

My first real experience with Chinese food was when my first husband and I moved to Calgary.  Every once in a while we used to go to a restaurant in downtown Calgary  that was known for having great food, with friends  as a sort of a date night. My favorite thing was always the sweet and sour dishes.  And the fried rice. Oh, and the fortune cookies. Lemon chicken . . . egg rolls . . . wontons . . . 

Okay. I liked it all.

It was always a very expensive night. Eating out was not cheap and when you have a family to take care of as well, the expense made it a very rare treat.  I learned to cook my own Chinese meals at home.

I used to watch a cooking show on the telly called Yan Can Cook. I learned a few things from watching him and put them into practice at home.

 

I made excellent Fried Rice. I still do. The original recipe was given to me by my late Mother-In-Law and  I adapted it to make it a bit more authentic. She always used minute rice. I prefer to use real rice.  

My ex and I also used to make really good chicken balls. We would make them in our deep fryer and shake the cooked balls in a paper bag after frying, to absorb any excess fat.  I remember one time we were making them and a young lad from a few doors over had stopped by to talk to my husband about something. 

The paper bag of cooked balls was sitting on the counter. (We did them in batches.) He was smoking a cigarette, and, not seeing an ashtray around, proceeded to ash his cigarette into the paper bag. I was horrified!  All those delicious balls ruined in one fell swoop!

Deep frying is not something that I do at home much these days if I can help it. That is one of the things which really appealed to me with this quick and easy recipe. There was no frying involved. Deep or otherwise!  There was also no cigarette ash!

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE OVEN BAKED SESAME CHICKEN

Just a few simple ingredients. I keep a fairly decent shelf of oriental cooking ingredients in my refrigerator. That way I am always ready to cook an Asian meal at the drop of a hat!

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 2 TBS cornstarch (corn flour)
• 1 TBS apricot jam
• 1 TBS soy sauce
• 1/2 TBS rice wine vinegar
• 1 tsp sriracha sauce
• 2 garlic cloves peeled and minced
• 1/2 TBS honey (optional)

To Garnish:

• sesame seeds
• sliced spring onions

 

True confession here, I did not have any apricot jam on the day, but I did have a jar of peach and mango jam (Bonne Maman).  Since the flavors are pretty similar I went with it and it ended up tasting delicious!

My soy sauce was dark soy sauce. I think the one in the video must have been light soy sauce as the sauce did not look quite as dark as mine.

It you use gluten free soy sauce, this is  a gluten free recipe.

I used untoasted sesame seeds.  I also sliced my spring onions very thinly on the diagonal.  For ease I also used a pouch of ready cooked Basmati rice to serve with the chicken.  

This was a really delicious meal. All it lacked was some type of vegetable, but that was easily fixed by quickly steaming some broccoli to serve on the side.

 

HOW TO MAKE OVEN BAKED SESAME CHICKEN

Nothing could be easier.  Really. The chicken bakes to crispy coated perfection in the oven. While it is baking you make a delicious sweet and tangy sauce to toss it in when its done. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

Preheat the oven to 450*F/230*C/ gas mark 7. Line a baking tray with some parchment paper.

Cut the chicken thighs into 1 inch cubes. Toss together with the cornstarch and place onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving plenty of space in between. Lightly spray with some low fat cooking spray.

Cook in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Flip over and spray with the cooking spray again. Return to the oven and cook for a further 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown, crispy edged and cooked through. (The juices should run clear.)

While the chicken is roasting whisk all of the remaining ingredients together in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to the boil, then reduce and simmer until thickened.

 

When the chicken is done, toss it together with the sauce to coat.

Divide the sauced chicken between two bowls and garnish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and some spring onions. Rice or noodles are great served with this.

 

This was excellent!  I loved that the chicken was baked and not fried. I loved the ease of preparation and I loved that it was delicious!  

That sauce was the perfect combination of sweet, tangy and heat!  (From the Sriracha sauce.) Just garlicky enough as well. I enjoyed this with a bowl of steamed rice.  I was a very happy camper!

I really love Asian flavors. Chinese, Indian, North Americanized versions of either one. I have not always lived near restaurants where I can get this kind of food, and I don't always want to fork out the big bucks for this kind of food. Making my own is often a better option.  Authentic or not, here are some very tasty other options for this type of food!

SWEET & SOUR CHICKEN BALLS -  I have been making these delicious chicken balls for years and years, at least since the 1970's.  Crispy coated, perfectly cooked tender pieces of chicken with a lovely sweet and sour sauce. These are every bit as good as the ones you might find in a restaurant, In fact, they may even be better!

VEGETABLE CHOW MEIN - This is a small batch recipe for a delicious Chinese side that is every bit as tasty as a full sized version. With plenty of crunchy vegetables and a tasty sauce. This very easy 30-minute vegetarian chow mien recipe packs in plenty of color, crunch and flavor.  And this is at its very simplest.  You can go as crazy with the vegetables as you like, adding even more, depending on your tastes! You can even add some meat or poultry to it to make it if you wish. 

Yield: 2 servings

Author: Marie Rayner

Oven Baked Sesame Chicken

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 35 Min

This delicious version of Sesame Chicken is not battered or deep fried. Instead it is lightly coated with cornstarch and baked. While it is baking a simple sauce is made. The crispy baked chicken pieces are coated in this delicious sauce. Low sugar, low fat and delicious. Can easily be doubled.

Ingredients

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 2 TBS cornstarch (corn flour)
• 1 TBS apricot jam
• 1 TBS soy sauce
• 1/2 TBS rice wine vinegar
• 1 tsp sriracha sauce
• 2 garlic cloves peeled and minced
• 1/2 TBS honey (optional)

To Garnish:

• sesame seeds
• sliced spring onions

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 450*F/230*C/ gas mark 7. Line a baking tray with some parchment paper.
2. Cut the chicken thighs into 1 inch cubes. Toss together with the cornstarch and place onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving plenty of space in between. Lightly spray with some low fat cooking spray.
3. Cook in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Flip over and spray with the cooking spray again. Return to the oven and cook for a further 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown, crispy edged and cooked through. (The juices should run clear.)
4. While the chicken is roasting whisk all of the remaining ingredients together in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to the boil, then reduce and simmer until thickened.
5. When the chicken is done, toss it together with the sauce to coat.
6. Divide the sauced chicken between two bowls and garnish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and some spring onions. Rice or noodles are great served with this.

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