Gluten-Free Sweet Fire Chicken - Panda Express Copycat
Gluten-Free Sweet Fire Chicken is an all-time favorite meal! This sweet and spicy Panda Express copycat recipe is a tasty gluten-free rendition of the popular restaurant dish. Great for when that fast-food craving hits!
20ounce canpineapple chunks or tidbits in 100% juice, drained
1cupgluten-free Thai sweet chili sauce
2cupslong grain white ricesteamed
½cupoilfor frying
Instructions
Bread the Chicken
Dice the chicken into 1-inch cubes.*see notes
Set up a breading station with three shallow dishes. Put gluten-free flour one, whisk together eggs and milk in the next, and put breadcrumbs in the third dish.
Dredge one piece of chicken in the flour, toss to coat, and shake off the excess.
Then dip it into the egg mixture and let the excess drip off.
Lastly, coat with panko breadcrumbs.
Set each piece of chicken aside and repeat until all the chicken has been coated. Let rest for 30 minutes, if possible.**see notes
Prepare the Sweet Fire Chicken
Steam rice according to your preferred method.
Dice the bell peppers and onion into 1-inch pieces. Drain the pineapple. Set aside.
Heat about ½ cup of oil in a large deep-sided skillet over medium-high heat. (You can also deep fry the chicken if you prefer.)
When hot, fry the chicken in batches until golden brown and cooked through. Remove the chicken to a paper towel lined plate to drain.
Once all the chicken is cooked, remove excess oil leaving about 1 tablespoon in the pan.
With heat still on medium-high, quickly sauté the bell peppers and onion until crisp-tender.
Add in the drained pineapple and allow it to heat through, about one minute.
Pour in the sweet chili sauce and stir to combine. Allow the mixture to simmer just another minute or so until heated through.
Serve immediately by placing steamed rice in a bowl. Top with diced chicken and a spoonful of the sweet fire mixture.
Notes
*You can bread chicken tenders whole, dice them first, or used diced chicken breast. Any option is fine. If you cook the chicken tenders whole, dice them before serving with the sauce.**If you have time, bread the chicken a little ahead and let it rest for about 30 minutes. This helps the breading stick better to the chicken. If you don't have that much time you can skip the resting period. If you bread the chicken more than 1 hour in advance, be sure to refrigerate it.