Bourbon Chicken

If you've ever ordered Chinese take out, you've probably spotted Bourbon Chicken on the menu. And you might wonder to yourself, where exactly in China did this dish originate from?

You could find many different answers to that question through the many aisles of the interwebs. The general consensus is that the dish was created at a Chinese restaurant in New Orleans, and is named after - you guessed it - Bourbon Street. It's become a staple across the country, one that I've had at countless restaurants (and mall food courts, back in the day).

It's a fairly simple recipe, though as always, there's many a customization option. For me, adding crushed red pepper is a great upgrade to any dish. You can also pass on using actual bourbon and use apple juice. I went to OG route, rather ironically stopping on the way home from the gym to grab a bottle of Bulleit at the liquor store. The fact I did not have any bourbon in the house was enough reason to go authentico.

I'd be remiss if I didn't talk about bourbon for a moment. I love bourbon. The key to a perfect old fashioned, bourbon is a warm, deeply flavorful beverage of mashed, fermented items (keep reading). Bourbon is whiskey, but to qualify as bourbon, it must be composed of more than half corn. There's also rye whiskey (rye, perhaps ever so obviously) and scotch (malted barley), amongst a few others.

I will say that I recommend low-sodium soy sauce for this. When I made it first, I used regular, and even without adding a dash of extra salt to this dish, it was fairly potent on the salt factor. Salt has plenty of purpose in cooking, but I don't love feeling like a cow who is gratefully enjoying a salt lick.

The most important part, of course, was measuring out the bourbon. A glass for me, a glass for my dinner. Good thing I went to the gym that day.

I'd normally share some photos of the steps, but boy, this one was simple and frankly, looking at a sauce covered pan was not appetizing. The process was simple: cut chicken into cubes and cook in a saucepan until browned. Whisk together the sauce, add to the pan and simmer, then make a cornstarch slurry to thicken it up. I don't know that I can order this via takeout in the future, now knowing the simplicity of it.

It only took about 20 minutes to make and I had an ample supply. The only thing missing was the cardboard taken out box.

The sauce was great; for me, a little more kick would have been great, but I’d skip out on the crushed red pepper if that isn’t really your thing.

Simple. Easy. Homemade. I knew all the ingredients. This is the ideal weekday dish, when you’re tired and just want to toss something together. Highly recommend trying it with alterations, such as adding onion or sweet peppers. It’s your bourbon chicken, do whatcha want.

What’s your favorite take out dinner? Fresh bourbon chicken made me a glad I’d taken the time to cook. 

Bourbon Chicken Recipe

Ingredients:

2-3 chicken breasts (about 1 pound), cut into cubes

1 tablespoon cooking oil (I used avocado)

1/4 cup bourbon (or apple juice)

1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons minced garlic (2 cloves)

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)

1 teaspoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons water

2 cups cooked rice

Instructions:

Heat oil in a large skillet and heat to medium-high. Add chicken and cook for 7-10 minutes, until cooked throughout. In a small bowl, whisk together soy bourbon, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, and crushed red pepper. Pour into the pan with the chicken and lower heat once the sauce begins to simmer. Cook for 3-5 minutes. In the same bowl, add cornstarch and water and whisk together. Slowly pour into pan and mix until combined. Sauce will thicken over the next 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and serve with rice.