May 17, 2012

Review: Panda Express - Sweetfire Chicken Breast

Panda Express' Sweetfire Chicken Breast entree features crispy-fried white meat chicken bites wok-tossed with red bell peppers, diced onions, and pineapple in a sweet chili sauce.

I got it for lunch as part of a two-entree plate for $6.29.

This entree is very similar to my Panda Express favorite, Orange Chicken. It has similar sweet and sour notes plus it's battered and made of chicken. It's made of chicken breast and comes in decent-sized chunks.

Like Orange Chicken, it doesn't quite turn out crispy; sitting in a steam table with heat lamps tends to defeat the crispy. Plus, just having fried batter sit makes it soft. Unless you get it right when they just cook it, it's not going to be crispy. The chicken was tender enough.

While the sauce is similar to the one used for Orange Chicken, it doesn't have the same orange-y notes. Instead, it's sweeter, much spicier (despite the "spicy" warning Orange Chicken is not spicy to me) and gets its sourness with pineapple flavor.

The Sweet and sour of Sweetfire Chicken Breast is nice, but I just found myself wanting the less sweet, more salty Orange Chicken; I liked the spiciness but find the entree a bit too sweet. Still, if you're looking for something spicy, sweet, and sour on Panda Express' menu, this is it.

Nutritional Info - Panda Express Sweetfire Chicken Breast
Calories - 440 (from Fat - 160)
Fat - 18g (Saturated Fat - 3.5g)
Sodium - 370mg
Carbs - 53g (Sugar - 27g)
Protein - 17g

1 comment :

  1. Lemon chicken.

    Makes me drool with delight but only if the stuff is made properly.

    Oh how rare have been the times the lemon chicken I obtained was the yummy variety.

    The "secret" is in the sauce and, apparently, very few cooks/chefs/vittles throw togetherers know how to make the lemon chicken that appeals to me.




