As a mom cooking for kids, it can be a challenge to get said kids to be adventurous and try new foods. A month ago or so, we took advantage of a lazy Friday evening at home and ordered Chinese take-out, which was an adventure in itself because we seldom do it. Having the kids choose their dishes… that was another challenge, because sometimes those picky tendencies come out. They’re cautious in trying something new. (Although, now that I think about it, a week or so ago they were sampling braunschweiger at the grocery store and the kids went over to see the sample lady. When she told them it was a spread made from liver, Zander quickly reeled in horror and backed away. Abigail bravely took a cracker and tried a timid taste. I had to finish the cracker, but hey, she tried liver!)
One of the dishes we settled on ordering was Sweet And Sour Chicken. We subsequently discovered that Zander loves it. You know how you get take-out in those quart size paper boxes? Zander ate almost the entire box by himself, along with the rice, sauce and an egg roll on the side. He was in Heaven. What little leftovers there were he happily devoured the next day for lunch. And then promptly asked when we were going to order Chinese again.
I needed to make this sauce. I spent some time looking up different sauce recipes and ultimately decided to tweak a few of them and make one mine. A few weeks later, when I told Zander that I was making Sweet And Sour Chicken for dinner, he had serious doubts as to whether I could make it taste like his favorite take-out.
The recipe makes a boatload of sauce. It made enough for two dinners- and if I’d been a little sparing with the sauce it could have been divided into three portions. We like things saucy, so I’ll stick with dividing the finished product in two. I put half into a quart jar to cool- leaving a bit of headspace- and then put it in the freezer for another day.
It’s easy enough to do. Start with 1 1/2 cups of water in a saucepot, and then add 2/3 cup of white vinegar. (Apple cider vinegar would work great too!) Grab a whisk and whisk in 1 1/2 cups of white sugar and 3 tablespoons of cornstarch. Once the starch is blended in, add one 6 ounce can of tomato paste and whisk that in as well. Finally, add one 8 ounce can of either pineapple tidbits ot chunks in their juice. Just dump the whole thing in. Turn on the heat to medium, cook and stir occasionally until the sauce thickens and begins to boil. Reduce heat to simmer and keep it on the heat until you’re ready to add to your chicken, pork or vegetables.
Now, about that tomato paste. When I was reading through recipes, and reading reviews, there were quite a few recipes where reviewers said to avoid tomato paste in sweet and sour because it gives a metallic taste to the sauce. In those cases they recommended tomato sauce. I immediately thought that these people are not using the right tomato paste. A good tomato paste will have a rich tomato flavor, and that’s it- not a metallic after-note. Tomato paste is spectacular for adding a touch of thickness to stews, soups, chilis and salsas. But the key is to find a good tomato paste, and my preferred brand is RedGold. I always have a few cans of their tomato paste on my pantry shelf.
You may remember back to January of this year when I participated in a wicked fun challenge for RedGold tomatoes. Us Packer bloggers were matched up with Pittsburgh bloggers in a fun cook-off leading up to the big football game in February. I had so much fun creating recipes that utilized RedGold tomatoes. It was easy to do, since I always have their canned tomato products floating around- they’re just consistently delicious and also consistently affordable. My team easily won the challenge and were rewarded with a prize pack of canned tomato products and a few other goodies. I’ve thought often of that challenge and how I’d like to do more of that kind of thing. A challenge with really affordable everyday ingredients, because that’s how most people cook.
Well, they’re back. The folks at RedGold have put together a blogging contest which I am beyond excited about. They’ve asked food bloggers to get enthusiastic about tomatoes between now and the end of December. Come January, they’ll choose seven lucky bloggers to come spend a weekend at the Taste Of The NFL before the clash of the titans. If you’re a food blogger, you can find out the details here, and join the fun yourself! Though, I’m going to win one of those spots, so the rest of you can all duke it out for the remaining six.
Between now and the end of December, you will see quite a few posts heralding the delight of RedGold tomatoes. The growing season is officially over here in Wisconsin, and I avoid those anemic grocery store tomatoes like the plague, so this is the time of year when I rely on RedGold to keep me supplied with delicious tomato products to keep my kitchen functioning normally. I have quite a few new ideas brewing already, I’m just going to have to find the time to make it work.
I’m quite excited to do so.
Do make this Sweet And Sour Sauce. It tastes just like your favorite Chinese take-out, only it doesn’t use any food coloring, which I found in a lot of the more “authentic” recipes. My kids can attest that it is equally delicious on chicken or pork, and guarantees a member of the clean plate club at the end- even when you add in a TON more vegetables that you normally get with the take-out version.
Sweet And Sour Sauce
1 1/2 cups water 2/3 cup white or apple cider vinegar 1 1/2 cups white sugar 3 tablespoons cornstarch 6 ounce can of RedGold tomato paste 8 ounce can of pineapple chunks or tidbits in their juicePlace the water and vinegar in a saucepot and slowly whisk in the sugar and cornstarch. Whisk until the cornstarch has been fully combined. Add the RedGold tomato paste and whisk that in until no lumps remain. Stir in the pineapples and their juices and then turn the heat on to medium. Cook and stir occasionally until the sauce thickens and begins to boil. Turn the heat down and simmer for about 15 minutes or so- stirring every once in a while.
Serve the sauce over stir fried chicken, pork or vegetables. Leftover sauce can be refrigerated for five days, or frozen for several months.