Lychee Chili Chicken

I noticed a bag of lychees at the Asian store nearby and couldn't resist bringing it home to meet the family. We got on better than expected. And by "we" I mean just my daughter and I, as the others in the family don't care for lychee's strong personality at all.

Much like the Lychee Fiesta a few years ago where we had a spread of Chicken in Lychee Sauce, Lychee Strawberry Frozen Yogurt, and Lychee Flaming Diaquiri, I wanted to have a week of celebrating lychee, mainly to make sure we consume the bag of lychees brought home on a whim before they rot and turn to compost.

This is a simplified recipe of chicken in spicy lychee sauce. As always, adjust flavors to taste.

Ingredients for the Lychee Chili Sauce:
12 fresh (or frozen or canned) lychees, skinned, seeded - pulp only
2 serrano chilis, coarsely chopped
4 dry red chilies
2 cloves of garlic, peeled, crushed
3 Tablespoon white vinegar
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 Tablespoon sesame oil

1 large chicken breast, cut into chunks, plus a tablespoon of canola oil

Preparation

1. Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet, add the chicken chunks and a dash of salt, cover and cook over medium heat, flipping to cook all round
2. Combine the sauce ingredients in a blender and grind to a fine paste
3. Add the sauce to the par-cooked chicken and continue cooking covered, adding a splash of water as needed, and salt to taste
4. When chicken is done and the sauce has reduced, and the raw flavor has been cooked away, remove from heat, garnish with cilantro and spring onions and serve with warm basmati rice