Page 369 - Family cookbook v30_Neat

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Instructions

1. Cut chicken breast into bite size cubes.

2. To velvet chicken: Mix together 1 tablespoons cornstarch and 1/2 egg white.

3. Stir in cubed chicken coating well.

4. Marinate for at least 10 minutes.

5. Heat 2 cups oil until warm and then turn off heat so it doesn’t get too warm.

6. Cook chicken until white (NOT BROWN), about 15 seconds.

7. Set aside and discard oil.

8. Stir fry 1/4 cup peanuts in 1 tablespoon oil until golden brown.

9. Remove and set aside.

10. Stir fry 4 scallions (thinly sliced) and 3 cloves garlic (thinly sliced) in 2 table‐
spoons peanut oil for 10‐20 seconds over medium flame.

11. Add sauce ingredients to pan. When sauce comes to a boil, add cornstarch
mixture. The sauce must be thick enough to coat the chicken pieces. Add
chicken and peanuts and quickly toss to coat them well. Stir and toss the

chicken for 10‐30 seconds more until pieces are cooked through. It is good
served with rice.

Note from Earlene

“This is the recipe that made a chicken‐eater out of Dad (Earl Davison) He loved this recipe. We
usually used dry roasted peanuts and skipped the step of cooking the peanuts. Chicken may be
cubed and velveted in advance, then the recipe comes together quickly.

Why Earl Hated Chicken

“Frances had that farm out in Williamsburg and one way for Clyde to make a little money was back in them

days people didn’t have much refrigeration. People liked fresh chicken you know. They raised chickens. On
a Friday night we would kill a bunch of chickens and it was my job and Bill’s job to pick the feathers off those
chickens and Frances would gut them. We would cut their heads off and let them flop till they died and bled
out. Just smelling those feathers ruined me on chicken. I don’t care nothing about eating chicken. I can eat

it, but it’s not my favorite thing.” Earl Davison from 2003 interview