Hunan Hot & Sour Chicken

Serves:

Ingredients:

2 ts Each cornstarch and dry
1 md Carrot, thinly sliced
8 oz Sliced bamboo shoots
1 tb Water
Cooking sauce:
2 ts Cornstarch
1/2 ts Crushed red pepper
1/2 ts Salad oil
2 tb Soy sauce
2 1/2 tb White wine vinegar
into 1 inch pieces
1 sm Green pepper, seeded and cut
rinsed and drained
sherry
1/4 ts Each salt and pepper
1 lb Chicken breasts, skinned,
boned, and cut in bite-size
pieces
3 1/2 tb Salad oil
1 tb Minced garlic
2 ts Minced fresh ginger
1 tb Fermented black beans,
1/2 c Chicken broth

Method:

Chicken: In a bowl, combine cornstarch, sherry, salt and pepper.
Add chicken and stir to coat, then stir in 1 1/2 t of the oil and let stand for 15 minutes to marinate.
Prepare cooking sauce by blending all ingredients in another bowl, set aside.
Place a wok or wide frying pan over high heat.
When pan is hot, add 2 T of the oil.
When oil begins to heat, add garlic, ginger, and black beans.
Stir once, then add chicken and stir-fry until chicken is opaque (about 3 minutes).
Remove chicken from pan.
Add the remaining 1 T oil to pan.
When oil is hot, add green pepper, carrot and bamboo shoots.
Stir-fry for 30 seconds.
Add water and stir-fry for 1 1/2 minutes.
Return chicken to pan.
Stir cooking sauce, add to pan, and cook, stirring, until sauce bubbles and thickens.
If you like food that produces watery eyes and a burning mouth, pass a little bowl of hot pepper & black bean sauce (recipe follows).