Asian-Style Chicken Stir-Fry
Chicken strips browned in the wok with crisp vegetables, ginger, garlic and a little heat. Ready in 25 minutes.
Do not move the chicken the moment it hits the pan. Stirring straight away drops the temperature, the meat releases its juices and you end up with boiled texture instead of a brown crust — leave it alone until it releases on its own.
The sesame oil goes in at the very end, off the heat. It is a finishing oil, not a cooking one: heated hard it loses its aroma entirely.
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts, cut into small strips
- 4 tbsp corn or sunflower oil
- 2 scallions (spring onions), chopped
- 1/2 small carrot, in thin strips
- 1/2 small onion, in thin strips
- 1/2 red bell pepper, in thin strips
- 1 tbsp chopped garlic
- 1 tbsp ginger, chopped or grated
- 1/4 red chili, chopped
- 1 handful shelled peanuts, in pieces
- 1 tbsp honey
- 4 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil (optional)
- Sesame seeds, black pepper and fresh cilantro (coriander)
Method
- 1
In a wok or pan with a little oil, sear the chicken strips. Do not move the meat as soon as it touches the heat — otherwise it releases its juices and comes out with a boiled texture instead of browning.
- 2
Once the chicken is seared, add the onion, the carrot, the pepper, the garlic and the ginger. Cook over high heat for a few minutes, until the vegetables are firm and crisp.
- 3
Add the chopped chili and cook a minute more so it releases its aroma.
- 4
Add the peanuts, the sesame seeds, the pepper, the honey and the soy sauce. Toss briefly so the flavors come together. If you are using sesame oil, it goes in at this last step, off the heat — it is a finishing oil and hard heat destroys its aroma.
- 5
Serve immediately, garnished with more peanuts, seeds and a handful of fresh cilantro.
Chicken
Chicken is the wild card of everyday cooking: it stretches, it is cheap and it takes almost any technique. These are the recipes where it stops being a fallback and becomes the dish — stuffed, pan-fried, braised, with sauces built to keep it juicy instead of dry.
