This lemon chicken recipe has a very light crispy batter. The batter keeps the chicken moist. I first tried this in a Chinese restaurant and have been craving for it for a few weeks already. I was looking for some recipes online and their mostly baked lemon chicken. I wanted the thick lemon sauce on crispy fried chicken fingers so I had to somehow recreate it myself.
Start by making the sauce. Combine lemon juice, sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a saucepan then whisk to combine. Heat over medium heat just until it starts to thicken. Remove from heat then set aside to cool.
To create the batter, combine cornstarch, all-purpose flour, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt then whisk together. Beat egg with water, lemon juice, and olive oil. Pour the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients then stir until combined.
Dip chicken in batter then fry for about 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Do not overcrowd the pan to prevent the oil's temperature from dropping. Use a cast iron pan if possible. They're perfect for frying.
Serve the chicken with sauce separately or toss the chicken in the sauce.
Start by making the sauce. Combine lemon juice, sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a saucepan then whisk to combine. Heat over medium heat just until it starts to thicken. Remove from heat then set aside to cool.
To create the batter, combine cornstarch, all-purpose flour, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt then whisk together. Beat egg with water, lemon juice, and olive oil. Pour the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients then stir until combined.
Dip chicken in batter then fry for about 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Do not overcrowd the pan to prevent the oil's temperature from dropping. Use a cast iron pan if possible. They're perfect for frying.
Serve the chicken with sauce separately or toss the chicken in the sauce.
| Prep Time | Total Time | Yield |
| 15 mins | 30 mins | 4 servings |
Ingredients
Fried Chicken Fingers
- 1 lb chicken breast fillet, cut into strips or small pieces
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 egg
- ½ cup water or lemon juice
- zest of 1 lemon (optional)
- 2 tbsp lemon juice (optional)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Lemon Sauce
- ½ cup lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons) or ¼ cup water combined with ¼ cup lemon juice
- 1 ½ tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
- Create the sauce by whisking together lemon juice, sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Heat until sauce thickens then set aside to cool.
- To make the batter, combine cornstarch, all-purpose flour, baking powder, lemon zest, and zest then stir a little to combine. Whisk together egg, water, lemon juice, and olive oil. Stir in the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.
- Dip the chicken pieces into the batter then fry for about 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
- Serve the chicken with sauce or toss in sauce then serve.
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