Chinese Chicken Curry In a Hurry (ish) With Egg Fried Rice

Hi folks, BBC1 here, thanks for dropping by. In November last year I was looking at one of the blogs we follow, Happiness Stan Lives Here, and came across this post:

Chinese Chicken Curry For People Who Are So Lazy They Can’t Even Pick Up The Phone And Order Take-Out

The post is so humourous, well written, and delightfully photographed that my mouth watered as I laughed. It also reminded me of the Chinese take aways we used to phone for when we lived in London. But now, living in the middle of nowhere, that is out of the question. The post waxes lyrically about something called ‘Goldfish Chinese Curry Sauce’, shows a photograph of the container and explains you can order it from Amazon.

I remember thinking I should give it a try and ordered a tub. The tub sat in one of BBC2’s cupboards through November and December grinning at me and calling me coward till this week. Knowing that Lizzie was coming for lunch on Friday, I thought ‘hey why not’. I got my ingredients ready and noticed I had ordered the ‘Hot & Spicy’ version not the ordinary!

So it was time to do a little tweaking and see what else was in the cupboard. I have to say that we were overjoyed with the result, as many ‘Mmms’ ensued during it’s consumption with some egg fried rice. Suffice it to say that we now have six tubs of the sauce on order from Amazon!

I also should let you know that the recipe for the egg fried rice is BBC2’s and not mine. Also that it completes the meal perfectly.

The Curry…

Enough for approx twelve servings (ten if you’re greedy!)

Ingredients:

Four skinless chicken breasts cut into bite sized chunks
Two onions cut into chunks
One green, one red, and one yellow bell pepper, de-seeded and cut into chunks
One punnet of mushrooms cleaned and cut into quarters
One tub of ‘Goldfish Chicken Curry Sauce’
Two and a half pints of hot chicken stock (I used stock cubes)
Three to four tablespoons of oil for frying
One tablespoon of dark soy sauce for frying

For the marinade:
Two heaped tablespoons of corn flour
Two Egg whites
Three tablespoons of dark soy sauce
Three tablespoons of oyster sauce
Six Szechuan peppers ground to a powder
Three tablespoons of mirrin/rice wine or dry sherry
One tablespoon of fish sauce
One teaspoon of toasted sesame oil

Method:
Mix the marinade ingredients in a large bowl or container then add the cut up pieces of chicken and ensure all is evenly coated. Leave this to marinate for three to four hours preferably, but at least half an hour if you’re really in a hurry!

Prepare your sauce by putting the contents of the tub into your hot chicken stock and stirring to mix. I used a jug that holds about four pints to ensure there was enough room. If you prefer a thicker sauce, only use two pints of chicken stock. But remember, the egg and the corn flour will also thicken the sauce later.

Heat the oil in a wok or large pan on medium to high heat, add the onions and fry for a couple of minutes then add the soy sauce. Continue to fry until onions become translucent, then add the peppers and fry for a further couple of minutes, constantly stirring. Next add the mushrooms and ensure these are coated in the oil and soy sauce mixture.

Now add the chicken and it’s marinade and stir fry this until chicken begins to turn white and lose its ‘pinkness’. At this point stir in your prepared curry sauce. Bring to a boil then turn down the heat and allow your curry to simmer for thirty to forty-minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

The Egg Fried Rice…

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked basmati rice
2 cups of boiling water
1 cup frozen peas
3 spring onions sliced diagonally into small rings
2 beaten eggs
Small clove of garlic finely chopped
1 tablespoon of oyster sauce
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
3 tablespoons oil

Method:
It is best to cook the rice first so that it is cold when you want fry it. I use the following method to boil my rice. Rinse the rice by running it under cold water in a sieve until the water runs clear of starch. I boil a kettle of water and using a pan large enough to hold the cooked rice with a tight fitting lid I put a few drops of oil on a medium to high heat add the rice and stir it so that each grain of rice gets coated with the oil, now add the water and let the water come to a rolling boil, stir the rice to ensure that none has stuck to the bottom of the pan, turn the heat down to a simmer and place the lid on the pan for 10 to 12 minutes until it is cooked.

Then rinse the rice by running under cold water over it, using a sieve, and leave the rice in the sieve to drain while it goes cold. When the rice is cold you can make the egg fried rice, you will need to get everything ready and to hand. You will also need a plate or bowl to hold the cooked egg in. Start by heating 1½ tablespoons of oil in a wok or large non-stick frying pan on a medium heat and when the oil is hot add the beaten eggs and using a large metal spoon move the egg around the pan so that it starts to scramble, don’t overcook the eggs but remove them to you plate/bowl just before they set.

Add the remaining oil and the garlic to the pan and let it cook for a moment or two (seconds), then add the rice stirring all the time while breaking down any lumps that have formed. Then add the soy and oyster sauce and continue to mix the rice so that it gets evenly coloured by the sauces, now add the spring onions and peas again keep mixing the rice. Next add the cooked egg and using your spoon break up the egg and distribute it through the rice, cook for a minute or two and when the egg fried rice is hot it is ready to serve.

BBC1&2: We are so grateful to Happiness Stan Lives Here for a great recipe and this wonderful tip of using the ‘Goldfish Chinese Curry Sauce’. We must stress that this sauce really does give that ‘take-away’ taste. Also, remember we got the hot and spicy version, but have ordered the ordinary version as well this time, so will update you with how that works at a later point.

We can only say give it a go!

The Wrong Sauce…