Kicking off another week of #Stayhome recipes, we will be bringing you recipes for adaptations of various fast food items. With the release of KFC Singapore’s “Kolo Yok” Sweet & Sour Popcorn Chicken recipe, we decided to try making it at home to show you the end result.
It has become an unspoken understanding within my family to purchase kolo yok whenever we’re out eating zi char—that’s how much I enjoy the dish! For those who aren’t sure what kolo yok is, it’s often translated to sweet and sour pork. Most places prefer to make the pork extremely crispy while others keep it simple to let the sauce stay the star of the show.
Kolo yok typically consists of bell peppers, pineapples, tomato sauce, and pork.
I must say, I didn’t follow the recipe completely, and I changed just tiny parts of it. The end product tasted so much like kolo yok at zi char stalls, with popcorn chicken replacing the crispy pork bites. Without further ado, this is how I made KFC’s Popcorn Chicken version of kolo yok at home!
Ingredients
- 1 box of KFC’s Popcorn Chicken
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 tbsp garlic (chopped)
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tsp oyster sauce
- 4 tbsp water
- Green, red & yellow peppers (diced)
- 1 bowl white rice
- 1 egg
Tools
- Chopping board
- Knife
- Frying pan
- Spatula
Recipe Preparation
Preparation time: 10 minutes; Cooking time: 10 minutes
Feeds two
- Remove the seeds of the peppers and wash them. Dice the peppers into chunks and set aside.
- Heat half the cooking oil on medium heat on the frying pan.
- Make a simple sunny side up and set it aside for later.
- Sauté garlic with the remaining cooking oil until a crisp, golden-brown and fragrant.
- Lightly brown the sugar.
- Stir the ketchup and oyster sauce in the mixture until the sauce bubbles.
- Add water and simmer for a minute.
- Toss the diced peppers and in the pan for a minute.
- Add the KFC Popcorn Chicken and stir thoroughly to ensure every piece is covered in sauce.
- Plate your Sweet & Sour Popcorn Chicken, rice and egg together.
Recipe (In Pictures)
Step 1: Remove the seeds of all the peppers, give them a wash and dice them.
Step 2: Prepare all of your ingredients in separate bowls to ensure easier transitions while cooking.
Step 3: Make a sunny side-up with half the portion of cooking oil prepared. Set it aside for later.
Step 4: Sauté the chopped garlic in a larger frying pan with the remaining cooking oil till a fragrant golden-brown.
Step 5: Lightly stir in the sugar. Make sure to constantly stir the sugar to ensure it doesn’t get burnt.
Step 6: Add the ketchup and oyster sauce into the mix. Stir until the sauce starts bubbling.
Step 7: Add water to the mixture and let it simmer for a minute.
Step 8: Toss the diced peppers into the pan and cook until you smell the strong fragrance of peppers. I cooked mine for one and a half minutes.
Step 9: Throw in the KFC Popcorn Chicken and stir thoroughly to ensure all the meat is covered with sauce.
Step 8: Plate your “Kolo Yok” with rice and the sunny side up you made earlier. Bon appétit!
Looks like something you can get at a zi char stall? The best thing about this recipe is that you’re likely to have most of the ingredients already at home. There isn’t a need for a supermarket run to recreate this delectable dish.
I tried to make another batch with more ketchup and it was delightful. If you prefer stronger sweet and sour notes, feel free to add more ketchup to the recipe and tailor the measurements to your preference. The only thing lacking was the crunchy texture of crispy pork, something I usually favour when having kolo yok. Apart from that, the dish overall was a great halal and homemade alternative to have for a hearty dinner!
If you’re interested in making your own food from scratch, check out our previous recipes for some inspiration. For now, try out the KFC “Kolo Yok” Sweet and Sour Popcorn Chicken recipe and let us know how you fare, or how you tailored your recipe—it’ll take less than 30 minutes to whip up this tasty dish.
Expected Damage: S$10 per portion