You can make this easy chicken stir fry recipe in a wok, or a cast iron pan, in just 15 minutes. This is a healthy cooking method which any home chef should grasp.
Hey Foodies,
I’ve got a question for you. Well, more like two 🙂
How many of you like to stir-fry, and does that sound like a complicated process to you?
I am asking this because a few days ago, I was telling a fellow foodie that I am making an easy chicken stir fry recipe for this week’s post and she told me she has never stir-fried before because it sounds daunting.
‘Daunting?’, I asked surprised. This is such an easy and healthy cooking method, there’s nothing daunting about it.
But then she raised a few questions which made me realize that many foodies may think the same because they don’t know all the facts about stir-frying.
Hence, today I will show you how to make chicken and vegetables stir fry and I will also give you some helpful info about this cooking method.
More Chicken Recipes:
- Easy Chicken Fajitas
- Cheese Chicken Spaghetti Squash
- Mozzarella Chicken In Tomato Sauce
- Bruschetta Chicken Pasta
And don’t worry, I didn’t forget. As always, I will include my best tips and tricks.
So let’s start with the basics.
What Is Stir-Frying?
This is an easy method used to cook small pieces of meat, veggies, seafood and poultry, at high heat and in a cast iron pan or most often in a wok.
As the name suggests, it implies stirring frequently, but not as vigorously as we usually see in cooking shows or on TV.
This should be done gently, letting the ingredients cook properly before rolling them over.
Apart from being quick and easy, this cooking method is also healthy. It helps the veggies retain most of their nutrients and keeps the fat content low because you don’t use much oil.
Which pan should you use?
The best vessel for stir-frying is a wok.
However, if you don’t have one, you can use a cast iron pan. Your food will come out just as tasty, but the cooking process will take longer.
If you don’t have a wok but would like to purchase one, I suggest you go for the 14-inch carbon steel version.
This is the perfect size for home chefs because it’s not too large to handle, nor too small to fit all ingredients in.
Choosing between a rounded or flat-bottom wok
The traditional Chinese wok has a round bottom. However, this is not practical on a Western stove because it’s not stable.
So the flat-bottomed would be the best choice.
What is the best material for a wok?
Avoid nonstick woks because they are not made to be used at high temperatures, and you can only stir-fry on high heat.
Instead, get the carbon steel version and season it constantly. In time, this will create a coating layer which will be naturally nonstick.
I believe these were some of the most popular questions about stir-frying, but if you still want to know more, don’t hesitate to ask.
I love chatting about cooking 🙂
And now it’s time for my usual tips and trick.
How To Make Chicken And Vegetables Stir Fry In A Wok – Best Tips & Tricks
1. Prep the chicken and veggies before heating up the pan
Cut the ingredients into bite-sized pieces so they’ll get cooked quickly and evenly.
Make sure you don’t squeeze too many inside because they won’t cook uniformly and at the same time.
It’s worth noting that you shouldn’t put more than a pound of meat in the pan.
2. It’s easy to overcook so keep an eye on the timer
Stir-frying is a fast process because it implies cooking small pieces of ingredients at high temperature. So keep an eye on your timer because it’s easy to overcook.
It shouldn’t take the meat longer than 12 minutes to get cooked through and the veggies to turn crisp-tender.
3. Marinate the chicken
I know I said this is going to be a quick and easy chicken stir fry recipe, but if you really want to make the best of it, you need to marinate the meat before cooking.
This will make it tender and it will be bursting with flavors (trust me, it’s crazy delish).
Also, the marinating process is quite easy.
Just mix the chicken with a bit of olive oil, garlic, ginger and any other seasoning you might like. Then cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (overnight is best).
And that’s it.
With this simple tweak, you’ll make the best chicken stir fry. Trust me when I say, your friends and family will love you for it 🙂
4. Heating the wok
Before you stir-fry chicken and veggies, you need to heat the wok on your stove’s highest temperature.
But how do you know when it’s hot enough to cook?
Well, there’s a simple trick here.
Start drizzling water drops and when you see them evaporate within 1-2 seconds that’s when you should begin stir-frying.
5. Changing the ingredients of this recipe
This easy chicken stir fry recipe is quite flexible, which means that you can tweak it to your taste.
So if you don’t like the veggies I used, just swap them with your favorites. And here are some of the most popular: mushrooms, green beans, snow peas, asparagus, carrots, bok chow etc
Heck, you can even change the meat if you want.
Finally, I hope that everybody sees now just how easy it is to make chicken and vegetables stir fry in a wok. Not to mention healthy!
And if you have more questions about it, just drop them in the comments and I’ll be more than happy to help.
Now, with all these tips and tricks, I am sure you know how to make chicken stir fry. So fire up the stove and let the fun begin.
And if you liked my easy chicken stir fry recipe and want to see more like it, please Subscribe to my YouTube Channel.
Easy Chicken Stir Fry Recipe (With Vegetables And Cashew)
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 2-3 garlic cloves - finely chopped or minced
- 1 red chili - chopped
- 1 inch (2.5cm) of fresh ginger - finely chopped
- 1 lb (450g) boneless, skinless chicken breasts - cut into strips
- 2 red bell pepper - seeded and sliced into thin strips
- 2 cups (200g) mange tout or sugar snap peas
- 1/3 cup (50g) cashews
- 1/4 cup (60ml) reduced-sodium soy sauce - or coconut aminos to make it gluten-free
- 2 tsp cornstarch or gluten-free flour
- 1 cup (240ml) broth
- 1 green onion - thinly sliced to garnish
Instructions
- Heat oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add garlic, chili and ginger and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
- Add chicken and cook for about 3-4 minutes, until it turns golden-brown, stirring constantly.
- Add peppers, snap peas and cashew and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add soy sauce and cook 2 minutes, until the veggies are crisp-tender.
- In a small bowl, dissolve cornstarch in chicken broth and add it to the wok.
- Simmer for an additional 2 minutes, until the sauce thickens. Stir to combine.
- Serve over rice garnished with green onions.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
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Great video, and the recipe looks delicious too. I love stir-fries!
Thanks very much! I’m so glad you like it
Thanks for sharing your content.i am waiting for your next content. This content is helpful for others.i think next time we want more valuable content.
I use wok in my kitchen. To read those post I get more idea to how to use a wok. I like wok to use in my kitchen.
easy and tasty