CHICKEN AND VEGGIES IN BLACK BEAN SAUCE

Black bean sauce is made from fermented black soya beans. It is a popular ingredient in Chinese cuisine. It is regularly used in Chinese cooking just as tomato ketchup.

Black bean sauce has a characteristic sharp taste which mellows down when diluted with other ingredients. It is used as a base for stir-fried vegetables, stir-fried chicken or pork dish.

I have used white wine vinegar which can be replaced with regular vinegar. Capsicum or bell peppers make the dish look colourful , more vegetables like carrots, French beans, zucchini can also be used.

For chicken and veggies in black bean sauce, the chicken and vegetables are stir-fried followed by sauces. Boil some noodles and top it with the thickened sauce. Remember to serve the sauce over noodles just before serving as the hot noodle drink up all the sauce.

Recipe for Chicken and veggies in black bean sauce

Ingredients for Chicken and veggies in black bean sauce

• 300 gm boneless chicken
• 1 cup red, yellow and green bell peppers (cut lengthwise)
• ½ cup baby corn (cut lengthwise )
• ½ cup onion (sliced)
• ½ tsp ginger (finely chopped)
• ½ tsp garlic (finely chopped)
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 2 tsp brown or white sugar
• 4 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp soya sauce
• 2 tbsp black bean sauce
• 1 tbsp tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp green chilly sauce
• 1½ cups water
• Salt and pepper
• I tsp sesame oil and ginger juliennes for garnish

How to make

In a mixing bowl marinate chicken pieces in white wine vinegar and soya sauce. Keep aside for ten minutes.

Heat oil in wok or pan. Add the marinated chicken pieces to it. Stir fry for a minute.

Add ginger and garlic. Now put in the baby corn. Cook for a minute.

Add onions and bell peppers. Stir fry till the onions become translucent. We do not want to overcook the baby corn and bell peppers as we want to retain their crunchiness.

Add black bean sauce, green chilly sauce, tomato sauce, and brown sugar. Add one and half cups of water to it. Bring it to boil.

Make cornflour slurry in a quarter cup of water. Add this slurry to the boiling sauce, stirring continuously. The sauce will thicken and become shiny. Season with salt and pepper.

Simultaneously tip in the noodles in boiling water. Cook until done. Strain the water. Toss the noodles in a teaspoon of oil to avoid them from sticking.

For serving put some chicken and veggies in black bean sauce on cooked noodles. Top it with a teaspoon of sesame oil and garnish with ginger juliennes.