Sweet and Sour: Forget the Guilt

Sweet and sour dishes were one of the great forbidden pleasures of my wild food days when a fat gram was two graham crackers held together with melted marshmallows. Whether shrimp, pork or chicken, the preparation was the same: batter-coated, deep-fried food suspended in a syrupy sauce.

My favorite sensations: crunchy, sugary and tart in each bite.

I still like the flavor contrast. But I’ve discovered that less is more. Traditional Chinese-American sweet and sour dishes call for coating shrimp, chicken, pork or vegetables with a flour and egg batter, then frying. By eliminating this step, I can taste the basic ingredients, save time and halve the fat content.

Cutting back on sugar in the sauce and substituting a combination of citrus juices and orange marmalade make the contrast zesty, not cloying.

The following recipe is an adult answer to an adolescent craving. It calls for chicken, but you can use pork tenderloin, shrimp, scallops or chunks of perch.

The sauce simmers while the chicken is lightly sauteed, then the two are mixed together and served over rice.

It’s ready in minutes, tastes delicious and, for nostalgia’s sake, can be served from a white cardboard box.

ORANGE-GLAZED CHICKEN WITH ORANGE-SCENTED RICE

CHICKEN

1/2 cup orange juice

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 cup orange marmalade

1 teaspoon prepared mustard

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

2 teaspoons oil

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-size pieces

1/2 cup chicken broth

Combine orange juice, lemon juice, orange marmalade and mustard in small pan.

Stir together cornstarch and 2 tablespoons orange-juice mixture in cup. Pour back into pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until cornstarch dissolves and mixture thickens slightly. Stir in curry powder and white pepper and continue to simmer while preparing chicken and making Orange-Scented Rice.

Heat oil in nonstick skillet. Add chicken in single layer and cook over high heat until white on both sides, about 2 minutes per side. Set chicken aside.

Pour off any fat in skillet. Add chicken broth and stir up any browned bits. Pour in orange-juice mixture and stir. Add chicken and simmer 5 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. To serve, mound Orange-Scented Rice on platter. Spoon on chicken and sauce.

RICE

3/4 cup converted rice

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 teaspoon grated orange peel

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

Bring rice and chicken broth to boil in saucepan. Reduce heat to low. Simmer, covered, until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in orange peel, parsley and pepper.

Makes 2 servings.

Each serving contains about:

817 calories; 909 mg sodium; 96 mg cholesterol; 41 grams fat; 83 grams carbohydrates; 27 grams protein; 0.38 gram fiber.