Chicken Stir-Fry with Vegetables
Chicken thighs and whatever vegetables you have, cooked over maximum heat in a soy-sesame-ginger sauce. The fastest way to clear the fridge without the result tasting like leftovers. Done in 20 minutes if the prep is ready.
Ingredients
- 600 gboneless skinless chicken thighs
- 3 tbspvegetable oil, high smoke point
- 1 head broccoli, cut into small florets
- 1 red bell pepper
- 2 medium carrots, thinly sliced on the diagonal
- 100 gsnap peas or green beans
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 tbspfresh ginger, grated or finely minced
- 3 scallions
- 1 tbspsesame seeds
- 400 gcooked rice or noodles
- 60 mlsoy sauce, low-sodium
- 2 tbspoyster sauce
- 1 tbspsesame oil
- 1 tbsphoney or brown sugar
- 1 tbsprice vinegar
- 1 tspcornstarch, dissolved in 2 tbsp cold water
- ½ tspchili flakes
Method
- Mix all sauce ingredients in a small bowl — soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, honey, rice vinegar, and the cornstarch slurry. Set aside.
- Everything must be prepped and within reach before the heat goes on. Stir-fry moves fast and there's no time to chop once cooking starts.
- Heat a large wok or skillet over the highest heat your stove allows. Add 2 tablespoons of oil. When it shimmers and begins to smoke, add the chicken in a single layer. Do not stir for 2 minutes — let it sear and develop color. Stir and cook another 1–2 minutes until cooked through. Remove to a plate.
- Add the remaining oil to the same wok. Add broccoli and carrots first — the denser vegetables that take longer. Stir-fry 2 minutes. Add the bell pepper and snap peas. Stir-fry another 2 minutes. The vegetables should be bright and crisp-tender, not soft.
- Add garlic and ginger to the vegetables and stir constantly for 30 seconds until fragrant. Return the chicken.
- Give the sauce a stir (the cornstarch settles), then pour it over the chicken and vegetables. Toss everything for 30–60 seconds until the sauce thickens and coats every piece. It should be glossy, not watery.
- Serve immediately over rice or noodles, topped with spring onion and sesame seeds.
FAQ
Almost always a temperature problem. Either the pan wasn't hot enough before the chicken went in, or too much was added at once. When you crowd a hot pan, the temperature plunges and everything starts to release liquid instead of searing. The result is steamed, gray, flavourless meat. Heat the pan until it just starts to smoke, add a thin layer of chicken, and don't touch it for 2 minutes — let the crust form. Work in batches if needed.
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Comments (1)
An instant-read thermometer eliminates all guesswork with chicken stir-fry with vegetables. Chicken is perfectly done at 74°C in the thickest part. Every degree beyond that moves you further from juicy toward dry.