Sweet and Sour Simmered Chicken (Sappari-ni)
鶏肉のさっぱり煮 · Toriniku no Sappari-ni
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
Sappari-ni means "refreshing simmer": chicken thigh is dusted with flour, baked until golden, then finished in a light sauce of ginger, sugar, sake, vinegar and soy sauce until the glaze clings to every piece. The vinegar softens the meat and keeps the flavor bright rather than heavy, so even children who usually shy away from anything tangy tend to clean their plates. Baking the chicken first rather than frying keeps it simple and light, and the flour coating helps the sauce stick.
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 75 gchicken thigh
Seasonings
- 3.6 gflour
- 0.3 gginger paste (tube)Grated ginger sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh ginger for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated ginger in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- 1.5 gsugar
- 0.8 gsakeSake (Japanese rice wine) is used in small amounts to soften the smell of fish and meat and add depth. Japanese "cooking sake" often contains added salt. Some alcohol can remain after short cooking. If you prefer no alcohol for children, use the substitute. Substitute: The same amount of water (the taste will be a little simpler), or dry white wine.
- 0.9 gvinegar
- 2.3 gsoy sauce
- 34.5 mlwater
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- ginger paste (tube) (しょうがチューブ)
- Grated ginger sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh ginger for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated ginger in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- sake (酒)
- Sake (Japanese rice wine) is used in small amounts to soften the smell of fish and meat and add depth. Japanese "cooking sake" often contains added salt. Some alcohol can remain after short cooking. If you prefer no alcohol for children, use the substitute. Substitute: The same amount of water (the taste will be a little simpler), or dry white wine.
Directions
Video is in Japanese and may show a different version of this dish (other ingredients or steps). Follow the ingredients and steps on this page, especially when cooking for allergies.
- 1
Coat the chicken in flour, arrange it on a baking sheet, and bake in an oven preheated to 200°C (400°F) for about 10 minutes.
- 2
In a pot, combine the ginger, sugar, sake, vinegar, soy sauce and water and bring to a boil. Add the chicken from step 1 and simmer until the sauce thickens and coats the pieces.
The vinegar tenderizes the chicken and gives the dish a light, refreshing taste.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 162 kcal | 324 kcal | 162 kcal |
| Protein | 12.9 g | 25.8 g | 12.9 g |
| Fat | 10.6 g | 21.3 g | 10.6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 4.4 g | 8.7 g | 4.4 g |
| Fiber | 0.2 g | 0.3 g | 0.2 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.5 g | 0.9 g | 0.5 g |
| Calcium | 4.5 mg | 9 mg | 4.5 mg |
| Iron | 0.5 mg | 0.9 mg | 0.5 mg |
| Potassium | 231 mg | 462 mg | 231 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 162 kcal | 12.9 g | 10.6 g | 4.4 g | 0.2 g | 0.5 g | 4.5 mg | 0.5 mg | 231 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 324 kcal | 25.8 g | 21.3 g | 8.7 g | 0.3 g | 0.9 g | 9 mg | 0.9 mg | 462 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
Ingredients in this recipe
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