Recipe by Odaiah Leeds

Styling and photography by Penina Spero

As a young girl, one of my favorite chicken recipes was a dish made with duck sauce, ketchup, and peppers; it was yum! So I decided I needed a healthier version, and that’s when this sweet-and-sour chicken was born. This recipe is freezer friendly.

 

Yield: 8–10 servings

 

Ingredients:

2½ lb. thin chicken cutlets

1½ teaspoons salt, divided

¼ teaspoon pepper

1 cup arrowroot starch or flour of choice

½–¾ cup olive oil, divided

1 large or 2 small onions, sliced

4 colored peppers, sliced

1 8.82-oz. jar Fior di Frutta apricot jam (or similar)

¾ cup tomato sauce

¾ cup coconut aminos

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon garlic powder

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Season chicken with ½ teaspoon salt and pepper.

Dredge chicken in arrowroot starch.

Heat ¼ cup oil (add more as needed) in a frying pan and lightly fry each piece of chicken just until beginning to brown, not until fully cooked.

Transfer chicken to a 9×13 pan and set aside.

In the same pan, add onions and sauté until soft, then add peppers.

Meanwhile, prepare sauce by combining jam, tomato sauce, coconut aminos, rice vinegar, ginger, remaining salt, and garlic powder.

When peppers are soft, pour sauce over vegetables and let it come to a boil.

Pour sauce over chicken, cover, and bake for 30 minutes.