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pouring lemon sauce over fried chicken.
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4.73 from 104 votes

Chinese Lemon Chicken

This scrumptious Chinese Lemon Chicken has an incredibly tasty and crispy coating, served with a delicious lemon sauce and is ready in just 30 minutes! This is a classic Chinese takeout recipe, but can be easily made at home!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course: Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine: Chinese
Keyword: chinese lemon chicken, lemon chicken
Servings: 6
Calories: 255kcal

Ingredients

Chicken

  • 3 large chicken breasts boneless, skinless
  • 2 large eggs
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • ½ cup cornstarch
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour

Lemon Sauce

  • 2 tablespoon butter unsalted
  • ½ cup lemon juice freshly squeezed
  • ¼ cup sugar granulated
  • cup chicken broth low sodium
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Garnish

  • 2 green onions chopped
  • 1 lemon cut in wedges

Instructions

  • Butterfly the chicken breasts: Slice the chicken breasts in half lengthwise (butterflied) to get two thinner pieces from each breast.
  • Prepare the dredge: Combine the eggs with salt and pepper in a shallow bowl. In another bowl combine the ½ cup cornstarch with the flour and mix well.
  • Dredge the chicken: Dredge the chicken through the egg first, then through the flour mixture.
  • Fry chicken in batches: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken to the skillet, as many as you can fit, and fry for 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until golden and crispy. Transfer the chicken to a paper towel lined plate and repeat with remaining chicken.
  • Make the lemon sauce: Drain any leftover oil from the skillet. Add the butter to the skillet and melt. Add the lemon juice, sugar, chicken broth, ¼ tsp salt and 1 tbsp of cornstarch. Whisk everything well together and cook until the sauce has thickened and is smooth.
  • Finish the dish and serve: Slice the chicken into thin strips and pour lemon sauce over. Serve with rice.

Video

Notes

  1. The lemon sauce that is served with lemon chicken in restaurants, usually is more yellow in color. If you'd like to achieve that neon yellow color, add 2 or 3 drops of yellow food coloring.
  2. After you fry the chicken, make sure you place a paper towel on the plate to soak up any extra oil and to leave the chicken nice and crispy.
  3. If you'd like your sauce thicker, add a bit more cornstarch to it, until desired consistency.
  4. Store leftover lemon chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days.
  5. Freeze this in an airtight containers for up to 3 months! Allow to thaw overnight in the fridge before heating back up in the oven, on the stove, or on the microwave.

Nutrition

Serving: 1chicken piece | Calories: 255kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 108mg | Sodium: 391mg | Potassium: 321mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 270IU | Vitamin C: 19mg | Calcium: 25mg | Iron: 1mg