Top 4 Amazing Birds Nest Chinese Food

Birds Nest Chinese Food is a small, family-owned restaurant in New Haven. The owners opened it back in the ’50s, and they have been serving up authentic, delicious Chinese food ever since. They offer dishes like Kung Pao Chicken and General Tso’s Chicken.

Birds Nest Chinese Food is made from scratch daily, and their recipes come from photos of their mother’s hand-written cookbook that she left when she passed away.

They hope to pass down these recipes for generations by teaching their kids how to cook.

What is Birds Nest Chinese Food?

Birds Nest is an authentic Chinese restaurant that offers a wide variety of traditional and Americanized dishes.

Even though they have been in business for over 40 years, the restaurant still feels like it was recently built.Birds Nest Chinese FoodBirds Nest is an authentic Chinese restaurant that offers a wide variety of traditional and Americanized dishes.

Even though they have been in business for over 40 years, the restaurant still feels like it was recently built.

The owners of Birds Nest Chinese Food are very friendly and will make sure to cater to your family’s needs while they are there.

Top 4 Amazing Birds Nest Chinese Food

1. Kung Pao Chicken:

You won’t find this dish anywhere else! Made with chunks of chicken, peanuts, and diced vegetables and served in a spicy brown sauce. 

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
  • 2 medium-sized red bell peppers, de-seeded and chopped (you can use things like zucchini or eggplants if you don’t have red bell peppers)
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 1 package of 8 oz rice noodles (used in lo mein)
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 2 tbsp ketchup (you can also use sweet Thai chili sauce or hoisin sauce to make this a little sweeter and spic.

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in a wok and heat until warm. 

2. Add Birds Nest Chinese Food and cook until it is no longer pink, about 3-4 minutes on medium-high heat. 

3. Remove chicken from the wok and set it aside.

4. Add onions and bell peppers to the wok and cook until onions are translucent, about 4-5 minutes on medium-high heat, frequently stirring to prevent burning the onions.

5. Add Birds Nest Chinese Food and cook for about 3-4 minutes on medium-high heat, frequently stirring to prevent burning the chicken.

6. When the chicken is cooked through, add the noodles to the wok and cook in oil to soften it, about 2 minutes.

7. Add soy sauce, oyster sauce, and ketchup to taste (or use sweet Thai chili sauce or hoisin sauce instead)

8. Stir well and add chopped peanuts on top if you want!

9. Enjoy!

2. General Tso’s Chicken:

Covered with a sweet, spicy, sticky sauce and served with sliced green onions. 

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb chicken breasts (boneless and skinless)
  • 2 cups flour; you can use rice flour if you want it to be gluten-free
  • 1 cup cornstarch
  • 2 tbsp oil for frying (can use olive oil or sesame oil)
  • 5 tbsp dark soy sauce (Kikkoman is a good brand)
  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 3 tbsp vinegar (I used white vinegar because I didn’t have rice vinegar on hand, though you could also use apple cider vinegar) 
  • 1 tsp chili paste if you.

Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and mix well.

2. Cut Birds Nest Chinese Food into thin strips and put it in a bowl.

Birds Nest Chinese Food
Birds Nest Chinese Food

3. Dredge the chicken strips in the sauce to cover their entire surface (this helps both frying and taste).

4. Heat oil to medium-high heat, add enough chicken strips at a time to get your pot hot, fry until golden brown and crispy (about 4 minutes) 

5. Remove from oil and set aside.

6. Once all the chicken strips are fried, pour the sauce again to coat the egg-shaped pieces of chicken (about 3 minutes on medium heat).

7. Serve with green onions on top!

3. Eggplant with Garlic Sauce:

Eggplant with Garlic Sauce is somewhat of a hybrid between a noodle and a stir-fry dish in terms of preparation, but it still has a Chinese influence throughout.

It’s a stir-fry dish with extremely thin eggplant noodles, which is something you would see in a Chinese restaurant.

It has a garlic sauce on top, which gives it that extra kick, and the sweet and sour flavor balance well with the spice from the garlic.

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb eggplant, ends trimmed off
  • 1 lb spaghetti
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 cup minced onion (can use dried onion flakes)
  • 1 cup water or chicken broth 
  • Salt and pepper to taste 

Instructions:

1. Cook eggplant in boiling water until al dente (about 4-5 minutes); drain and set aside once cooked. 

2. While the eggplant is cooking, prepare the sauce by heating a wok of oil on medium-high heat with 1 tbsp of olive oil.

3. Combine half of the garlic powder with salt and pepper to taste in a bowl.

4. Once the oil is hot, add eggplant noodles and constantly stir for about 3-4 minutes until it softens.

5. Add spaghetti and mix well with the eggplant noodles (about 5 minutes on medium-high heat).

6. Pour in 2/3 cup of sauce to coat the noodles and stir until combined; add more if needed (1 tbsp at a time).

7. Once the sauce has coated the noodles, add minced onions and constantly stir for about 2-3 minutes to soften the onions.

8. Stir in water or Birds Nest Chinese Foodbroth, add garlic powder and mix well with the noodles (about 3 minutes).

9. Serve warm! 

4. Orange Chicken:  

Orange chicken is one of our most popular dishes! It’s like General Tso’s Chicken, but it uses a sweet orange sauce instead of a spicy brown sauce. The sauce is orange juice, sesame oil, and oyster sauce. 

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb chicken breast, boneless and skinless
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 tbsp oil for frying (can use olive oil or sesame oil)
  • 3 tbsp light soy sauce (Kikkoman is a good brand)
  • 2 tbsp oyster sauce (I used Kikkoman) 

Instructions: 

1. Remove skin from chicken parts and cut into small strips about 1/4″ thick. 

2. Heat oil in a wok and heat until warm. 

3. Add Birds Nest Chinese Food to the wok and cook on medium-high heat until cooked through about 3-4 minutes. 

4. Drain Birds Nest Chinese Food on paper towels and set aside.

5. Combine 1 tbsp of cornstarch with 1 tbsp of water and mix well; this is for the sauce later in the process (I did this step first so that I wouldn’t have to worry about it later).

6. Combine 2 tbsp of flour and 1 tbsp of cornstarch in a bowl, mix well and set aside.

7. Combine soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sesame oil in a bowl, mix well and set aside (this is what you will use for cooking the chicken).

8. Cook spaghetti according to package directions (about 5 minutes). 

9. Heat the wok again over medium-high heat with 2 tbsp of oil (you can also use sesame oil or olive oil). 

10. Add cooked noodles and constantly stir for about 3 minutes until the noodles are soft. 

11. Add Birds Nest Chinese Food to the wok and cook until heated through (about 2 minutes); add 1/3 cup of sauce and mix well with the noodles. 

12. Add cornstarch and flour mixture, mix well with chicken and noodles until combined, add more of the sauce if necessary (about 1 tbsp at a time)

13. Mix everything; top with green onions if you want! 

Conclusion

These are just a Birds Nest Chinese Food in the KBS repertoire, but this doesn’t mean that there are no more ethnic recipes.

There are several hundred different ethnic dishes and even more that you can modify! You can find almost every kind of dish with Asian influence here. 

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