I don’t often blog stir fries, because I never measure anything when I’m making them - never! - but I had my parents over for lunch today, and Mama wanted the recipe! So I’m going to give a stab at measurements.
Stir fries are awesome for healthy weight loss, they really are - just watch the rice! Actually, when I was working on shedding my 100+ pounds, I’d often eat them without the rice, just the straight stir-fry for dinner. Lots of vegetables, lean protein, and minimal calories in the sauce - what could be better?
A couple notes on the ingredients:
Tamari soy sauce is gluten free, marked so. If you are cooking gluten free, watch out for the soy sauces - contrary to their name, they are usually made from wheat!
Rice vinegar is often sold ‘seasoned.’ That just means it has sugar and salt added. Buy the plain, and ‘season’ it yourself! The salt in the soy sauce and the honey are plenty enough for this recipe.
Get all your ingredients ready to go before you start cooking anything! That’s a hard-and-fast rule for any stir fry. You’re cooking over a pretty high heat, and everything is cut into bite sized pieces. You don’t have time to get anything else ready once you start heating that wok!
And a note on the wok: if you’re going to do stir-fries, you really need a wok. Nothing really cooks as a stir-fry in any other kind of pan. You need a good one, but even my very favorites are not expensive - I’ve fallen in love with the IKEA woks, and yes, you can order online and have them ship!
CHICKEN AND BROCCOLI STIR FRY
3 tablespoons + 1/4 cup soy sauce (I use the low-sodium Tamari, because it is gluten free)
2 tablespoons + 1/4 cup rice vinegar (plain, not seasoned!)
4 tablespoons corn starch, divided
1 pound (or so) chicken breast
4 teaspoons (or so) honey
6 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons ginger paste (such as Spice World, in the squeezable bottles)
6 cups (or so) broccoli florets
Any other vegetables you like, cut into bite size pieces (snow peas are a favorite of mine in stir fries)
Green onions or scallions, for garnish
Rice for serving, if you choose
Trim your chicken and cut it into bite size pieces. Place it in a gallon-sized ziplock bag with 3 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, and 2 tablespoons cornstarch. ‘Zip’ the bag closed and squeeze the ingredients around until the chicken is well-coated and the marinade fully mixed. Place in the refrigerator while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
Mix up the rest of the sauce in a one cup measure: 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup rice vinegar, 4 teaspoons or so of honey (use more if you want it sweeter, of course), and 2 heaping tablespoons of corn starch. Whisk until well blended. Set aside.
Get your vegetables ready to go in the stir fry. Trim up your broccoli florets; steam in the microwave until just the ‘crisp’ side of tender-crisp. (You will finish them in the wok. Trust me, this is the best way to get them all done ‘just right’ when you’re stir-frying.) If you’re using snow peas, red bell pepper, whatever, get them diced up into bite sized. Dice your green onions or scallions for garnish; set aside.
Coat your wok with pan spray and add the garlic. You want to cook at a pretty high heat; I use the medium-high setting for the burner on my stove. Keep the garlic moving around as the pan heats, and when it is sizzling, get the chicken out of the fridge. Dump all contents of the ziplock into the wok. Add the ginger paste.
Keep stirring the chicken as it cooks. You don’t want anything to get too brown or to start sticking. Just as soon as the chicken is done (I’ll sometimes use my spoon to cut some of the larger pieces in half, to check done-ness), add the broccoli. Pour half the sauce over the broccoli (it might need another stir with the whisk, with that honey in there), and stir until ingredients in the wok are well combined. Pour the other half of the sauce in, and keep stirring.
When the sauce, vegetables, and chicken are well combined, take it up from the wok quick, before anything gets too done!
Serve hot - over rice, if you choose. *Just watch the portions on that rice!*
