cdkitchen > recipes > meals / dishes > dinner meals > meat and poultry dishes > chicken dishes > chicken with fruit > lemon chicken > chinese lemon chicken
Chinese Lemon Chicken
recipe at a glance
5 stars - 25 reviews
ready in: under 30 minutes
recipe id: 18563
5 stars - 25 reviews
ready in: under 30 minutes
serves/makes: 6
recipe id: 18563
photo by: rdaix
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BROWSE MORElemon chicken
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chinese
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ingredients
8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut in chunks or strips
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup water
4 egg yolks
2 cups cooking oil
green onions, sliced
***Lemon Sauce***
1 1/2 cup water
1/2 cup lemon juice
3 1/2 tablespoons light brown sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, or more if desired
directions
To make the batter, combine the cornstarch, salt, and pepper in a shallow dish. Beat the egg yolks with the water until combined. Add the egg mixture to the cornstarch and blend until smooth.
Heat the oil in a large wok or skillet.
Dip the chicken pieces into the egg mixture then cook in the hot oil until golden brown, turning as needed. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
Place the chicken in a serving dish and top with the sliced green onions. Pour the sauce evenly over the top of the chicken.
To make the sauce, combine all the ingredients in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, about 5 minutes until sauce boils and the brown sugar and bouillon granules are fully dissolved.
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nutrition
568 calories, 30 grams fat, 29 grams carbohydrates, 42 grams protein per serving.
submitted by: CDKitchen
reviews
25 reviews
KosherTreifCook 2012-12-19
Since beginning to keep Kosher several years ago, I've really missed having Chinese food (no Kosher Chinese restaurants in my area) so I decided to try making Chinese food myself. Last night I made this Chinese Lemon Chicken recipe and it was totally amazing. My picky 6 year old even liked it (minus the sauce). There were just enough leftovers for me to have for lunch today. So delcious and beautiful when served.
Guest: CL 2012-07-23
Absolutely fantastic! It certainly passed the husband test and the two of us ate the entire 6 servings!! Was easy to make, but a little time consuming for me as I shallow-fried the chicken in batches, totally worth it however :-)
Guest: Twitch 2012-07-23
The sauce was absolutely amazing! Couldn't have asked for a better meal!
Guest: fleurig 2011-08-27
Great recipe. I ate this once in a Chinese restaurant in the UK and loved it a lot. This recipe is quite easy and you don't have to buy a lot of fancy ingredients that will cost you a fortune. The only remark my husband and I would like to make is that it smelled a bit too much like honey which we didn't like.
Guest: Camermaid28 2011-05-18
I made it tonight for dinner. It was very good flavor and very easy to make. I will be adding it to my recipe collection for future use.
Guest: Michele 2010-10-30
Excellent! I loved it and it was very easy!
Guest: jeenamarie 2010-01-22
this recipe was so easy to follow. It taste great. Me and my little brother made it todether and he would not stop eating the sauce. I am going to save this one and i WILL be making it again.
Guest: Hulagirl 2009-08-15
The lemon sauce was absolutely divine; not sickly sweet as in Chinese restaurants but light, clear with a rich citrus flavor. The chicken was very crisp. I also used a dutch oven to fry the pieces. Even when I plated this dish and poured the sauce over, the chicken stayed crisp. I halved the recipe because I was only cooking for myself. I tried to save some for my daughter but it was so delicious I kept on eating until I realized it was all gone. Will definitely make this again. Will also try to save some for my daughter this time. Or not!
Guest Foodie 2009-07-26
This is better than any lemon chicken I have ever eaten at a chinese restaurant. I don't order it anymore because I know I'll be disappointed. Tastes so much fresher and the sauce delightfuly tangy....a keeper in my book!
Guest: yummer 5 2009-03-08
I thought this was a great recipe! I used a dutch oven pot to fry the chicken with 1.5c of canola oil and .5c of olive oil and made sure the oil was very hot before I put the chicken in and it came out nice and crispy! I also used larger chicken finger sized pieces to make it easier - less pieces to worry about. To the person who did not get crispy chicken - try frying the chicken in smaller batches. Also if the oil is hot enough, the oil will cook the chicken instead of absorbing into the batter making it greasy. Happy cooking all!
Guest: big pudding 2009-01-31
Absolutely delicious. The only things that I changed was that I used some of my Moroccan Preserved Lemons and 3 green Chillis.
greenie106 2007-12-26
So easy to make and tastes delicious! You will love it!!
Guest: JJ 2007-08-13
Absolutely amazing sauce. Im 19 and at Uni and this recipe is ideal to cook for everyone and everyone loves it. Thanks!
Guest: austindiva 2007-08-09
Holy cow, it was a party in my mouth! So dang good! I am thrilled that I can actually cook chinese take out at home - it tasted just like a restaurant if not better. One tiny thing I did different is I sauted some onions and bell pepper and after the sauce was ready I added the veggies to the sauce, then I mixed the whole thing in with the chicken. It was so great ya'll. I love the batter for the chicken - it is just like the kind you find in the restaurants.
Guest: Jacki 2007-07-21
wow this is the second best thing ive eva tasted!yes, im the person from 2 questions up. its aboulsutley delicous! pretty easy 2 make 2, and im only 12! i love 2 cook and i want 2 b a chef &open a resturant when im older and lemon chicken will definetly be on the menu!!
Guest Foodie 2007-07-14
Excellent lemon sauce. Tangy and sweet... but not too much. I cheated and used a tempura batter for the chicken -- easy enough to use and crisps up nicely. I suppose that would make my version a Japanese/Chinese combo dish. My teen guy and my husband loved it. So did I. So did the dogs... next time we'll have to hide in the closet while we eat ;) The only correction I would make is to pour the sauce over the chicken THEN sprinkle your green onion garnish.
Guest Foodie 2006-09-02
WOW! My kids inhaled this recipe! I will definately be making this again and will have to double the recipe so I can actually get some!
dahall 2012-11-21
excellent... I used a deep fryer to cook the chicken.
Guest Foodie 2010-05-10
This was really good! The kids loved it too, which is an accomplishment. Super easy to pull together. I just used the sauce portion of the recipe and served it over fried tofu and seitan with broccoli and rice.
jennacooks 2009-04-03
I thought it tasted great. The batter part was a bit different, and I think the next time I make it hopefully it turns out better. My boyfriend said it tastes great with hot sauce and some nacho chips. I served it with white rice.
Guest: IRK!! 2008-03-07
Pretty yummy! I used a little less sugar in the sauce and about 1.5x as much lemon juice - which I thought worked slightly better. Anyway, a good dish!
wistaria 2005-03-30
I really liked the sauce in this recipe. It is sweet, but not too much and it also brings out the delicious taste of citrus. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is that the chicken is not crispy. To me, deep-frying isn't worth the extra fat unless it's nice and crunchy. Other than that, I thought this recipe is tasty, easy, and fun!
italiana20og 2009-09-13
I think there was a bit too much honey called for. It should have probably been 3 teaspoons instead of tablespoons. Other than that it was nice. Also, I used lemon juice from concentrate and I should have used fresh but I know now fresh is better.
Guest: Dan and allie 2008-10-05
My 5 year daughter and i made this...turned out great..easy and kids loved it..used the extra lemon sauce on mixed vegetables..yumm
Guest: Jacki 2007-06-20
I haven't tried this yet but I'm about to, I hope it tastes as good as it sounds!!!!
KosherTreifCook 2012-12-19
Since beginning to keep Kosher several years ago, I've really missed having Chinese food (no Kosher Chinese restaurants in my area) so I decided to try making Chinese food myself. Last night I made this Chinese Lemon Chicken recipe and it was totally amazing. My picky 6 year old even liked it (minus the sauce). There were just enough leftovers for me to have for lunch today. So delcious and beautiful when served.
Guest: CL 2012-07-23
Absolutely fantastic! It certainly passed the husband test and the two of us ate the entire 6 servings!! Was easy to make, but a little time consuming for me as I shallow-fried the chicken in batches, totally worth it however :-)
Guest: Twitch 2012-07-23
The sauce was absolutely amazing! Couldn't have asked for a better meal!
Guest: fleurig 2011-08-27
Great recipe. I ate this once in a Chinese restaurant in the UK and loved it a lot. This recipe is quite easy and you don't have to buy a lot of fancy ingredients that will cost you a fortune. The only remark my husband and I would like to make is that it smelled a bit too much like honey which we didn't like.
Guest: Camermaid28 2011-05-18
I made it tonight for dinner. It was very good flavor and very easy to make. I will be adding it to my recipe collection for future use.
Guest: Michele 2010-10-30
Excellent! I loved it and it was very easy!
Guest: jeenamarie 2010-01-22
this recipe was so easy to follow. It taste great. Me and my little brother made it todether and he would not stop eating the sauce. I am going to save this one and i WILL be making it again.
Guest: Hulagirl 2009-08-15
The lemon sauce was absolutely divine; not sickly sweet as in Chinese restaurants but light, clear with a rich citrus flavor. The chicken was very crisp. I also used a dutch oven to fry the pieces. Even when I plated this dish and poured the sauce over, the chicken stayed crisp. I halved the recipe because I was only cooking for myself. I tried to save some for my daughter but it was so delicious I kept on eating until I realized it was all gone. Will definitely make this again. Will also try to save some for my daughter this time. Or not!
Guest Foodie 2009-07-26
This is better than any lemon chicken I have ever eaten at a chinese restaurant. I don't order it anymore because I know I'll be disappointed. Tastes so much fresher and the sauce delightfuly tangy....a keeper in my book!
Guest: yummer 5 2009-03-08
I thought this was a great recipe! I used a dutch oven pot to fry the chicken with 1.5c of canola oil and .5c of olive oil and made sure the oil was very hot before I put the chicken in and it came out nice and crispy! I also used larger chicken finger sized pieces to make it easier - less pieces to worry about. To the person who did not get crispy chicken - try frying the chicken in smaller batches. Also if the oil is hot enough, the oil will cook the chicken instead of absorbing into the batter making it greasy. Happy cooking all!
Guest: big pudding 2009-01-31
Absolutely delicious. The only things that I changed was that I used some of my Moroccan Preserved Lemons and 3 green Chillis.
greenie106 2007-12-26
So easy to make and tastes delicious! You will love it!!
Guest: JJ 2007-08-13
Absolutely amazing sauce. Im 19 and at Uni and this recipe is ideal to cook for everyone and everyone loves it. Thanks!
Guest: austindiva 2007-08-09
Holy cow, it was a party in my mouth! So dang good! I am thrilled that I can actually cook chinese take out at home - it tasted just like a restaurant if not better. One tiny thing I did different is I sauted some onions and bell pepper and after the sauce was ready I added the veggies to the sauce, then I mixed the whole thing in with the chicken. It was so great ya'll. I love the batter for the chicken - it is just like the kind you find in the restaurants.
Guest: Jacki 2007-07-21
wow this is the second best thing ive eva tasted!yes, im the person from 2 questions up. its aboulsutley delicous! pretty easy 2 make 2, and im only 12! i love 2 cook and i want 2 b a chef &open a resturant when im older and lemon chicken will definetly be on the menu!!
Guest Foodie 2007-07-14
Excellent lemon sauce. Tangy and sweet... but not too much. I cheated and used a tempura batter for the chicken -- easy enough to use and crisps up nicely. I suppose that would make my version a Japanese/Chinese combo dish. My teen guy and my husband loved it. So did I. So did the dogs... next time we'll have to hide in the closet while we eat ;) The only correction I would make is to pour the sauce over the chicken THEN sprinkle your green onion garnish.
Guest Foodie 2006-09-02
WOW! My kids inhaled this recipe! I will definately be making this again and will have to double the recipe so I can actually get some!
dahall 2012-11-21
excellent... I used a deep fryer to cook the chicken.
Guest Foodie 2010-05-10
This was really good! The kids loved it too, which is an accomplishment. Super easy to pull together. I just used the sauce portion of the recipe and served it over fried tofu and seitan with broccoli and rice.
jennacooks 2009-04-03
I thought it tasted great. The batter part was a bit different, and I think the next time I make it hopefully it turns out better. My boyfriend said it tastes great with hot sauce and some nacho chips. I served it with white rice.
Guest: IRK!! 2008-03-07
Pretty yummy! I used a little less sugar in the sauce and about 1.5x as much lemon juice - which I thought worked slightly better. Anyway, a good dish!
wistaria 2005-03-30
I really liked the sauce in this recipe. It is sweet, but not too much and it also brings out the delicious taste of citrus. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is that the chicken is not crispy. To me, deep-frying isn't worth the extra fat unless it's nice and crunchy. Other than that, I thought this recipe is tasty, easy, and fun!
italiana20og 2009-09-13
I think there was a bit too much honey called for. It should have probably been 3 teaspoons instead of tablespoons. Other than that it was nice. Also, I used lemon juice from concentrate and I should have used fresh but I know now fresh is better.
Guest: Dan and allie 2008-10-05
My 5 year daughter and i made this...turned out great..easy and kids loved it..used the extra lemon sauce on mixed vegetables..yumm
Guest: Jacki 2007-06-20
I haven't tried this yet but I'm about to, I hope it tastes as good as it sounds!!!!
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