We have a winner!

Three cheers for allrecipes.com! That is my favoritest website ever! I found a recipe there recently called Perfect Sesame Chicken, posted by Doreen P. Thankyou, Doreen, wherever you are! I made the dish tonight and it was a big hit.

These are the ingredients:

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy
sauce
1 tablespoon dry sherry
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 dash sesame oil
1 pound skinless, boneless
chicken breast meat - cubed

1 cup chicken broth
1 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons distilled white
vinegar
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon chile paste
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup water

1 quart olive oil for frying
2 tablespoons toasted sesame
seeds

I fudged on some of the ingredients, because I didn't have them. But it was still good. Here's a picture of my sesame oil and my chili paste together. That's soy sauce in the background (I think he was feeling a little camera shy.)

Make a thickish sort of batter with the first 9 ingredients. Then add the chicken. Fry it in the oil until it is brown and begins to float. Then take it out and let it drain on paper towels. This is mine when I first put it in (I fried it in several batches, because I tripled the recipe):

If you're coordinated enough and the ducklings are spellbound by a Magic Schoolbus DVD, go ahead and make the sauce now. Stir the next 7 ingredients in a pot and bring them to a boil. Mix the cornstarch and cold water and stir them in until the sauce gets thicker. Set it aside until you're done with the chicken.

After you're done frying the 23 pounds (well, almost) of chicken you cut up, stir the sauce into it so that all is coated evenly. Then, go settle a fight that erupted between Magic School Bus episodes involving several hoodlums wearing boxing gloves, er.. uh...oven mitts.

I was sorely regretting not having any broccoli on hand, because it would have really gone well with this dish. I ended up cutting up and sauteeing some carrots & onion and adding them at the end with the sauce.

Man, it was soooo good! I'm not exaggerating. Two of my toughest critics gave it 2 thumbs up!