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Chicken and vegetable stir fry – How to prepare

Chicken and vegetable stir-fry is an excellent dish in many ways. It is quick to prepare and rich in vitamins and minerals with a balanced proportion of protein, carbohydrates, and fibers. 

Chicken and vegetable stir-fry is also a home-cooked dish for the whole family. It is a complete meal with balanced nutritional value and is best served with white rice, but it is also delightful to be a stand-alone meal or served with noodles.

I will explain in detail how I prepare the chicken stir-fry with vegetables. The easy recipe is very forgiving, which means you can use any combination of vegetables and substitute the chicken thighs with breast meat.

Chicken and vegetable stir-fry is quick to prepare, rich in vitamins and minerals with a balanced proportion of protein, carbohydrates, and fibers.

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1. How to prepare the chicken 

Here are three crucial points on how to prepare chicken meat. Let me explain.

a. Marinate the chicken.

This step is essential because chicken meat does not absorb the flavor of the stir-fry sauce quickly enough during the short stir-frying process. As a result, the meat will become tasteless in contrast to the broccoli and mushrooms that soak up all the gravy almost instantly.

To solve this problem, marinate the chicken with salt for at least fifteen minutes for thin slices and longer for bigger chunks.

There are a few common ingredients for the marinade besides salt. You can use light soy sauce for additional flavor, some cooking oil to create a smooth texture, and a little cornstarch to protect the meat from the direct heat during frying to avoid it from becoming dry.

b. The choice of meat.

Either chicken breast or thigh meat is suitable for this dish. However, I prefer thigh meat because it has a better flavor and is more tender. Besides, thigh meat will not easily break into smaller pieces during stir-frying than breast meat.

c. Stir-fry the chicken

Stir fry the chicken meat with some oil until golden brown to accentuate the umami. If you don’t do that, the stir-fried chicken will not develop the signature stir-frying aroma.

Stir-frying the chicken separately is the best way to achieve this. You may need to use lower heat initially since the chicken tends to stick to the wok’s surface due to the presence of cornstarch.

Note: Olive oil is not the choice for making stir-fries with the authentic Chinese flavor. The option is the oil with a high smoke point and a neutral flavor, such as corn oil, canola oil, and peanut oil.

2. Prepare the vegetables

a. The choice of vegetables 

Vegetables and chicken are the perfect combinations viewed from different aspects. It is a meal with balanced protein, carbohydrates, and fibers. This stir fry is rich in natural pigments, vitamins, and minerals. 

On the culinary side, the vegetables are visually appealing, with multiple colors and various shapes. They also have unique textures – a mix of crunchy vegetables and chewy mushrooms.

Remember always to choose a combination of different colors and textures when you do that. Also, cut them into different shapes for better presentation. You can use other fresh veggies besides carrots and broccoli. Some other favorite vegetables are snow peas, red bell pepper, yellow squash, baby corn, and green beans.

b. Soak the dried mushrooms 

If you use the Chinese dried shiitake mushrooms, soak them overnight in a small bowl with water before use.

The dried mushrooms have a better flavor than their fresh counterpart.

If you are short of time, soak the mushrooms in hot water and place a plate on top to ensure they are all submerged in the water. Once it is partially hydrated, remove the stem, and cut it into strips, then continue soaking until fully hydrated. The time required will reduce drastically to only one to two hours.

The water after soaking the mushrooms is like a mushroom stock, full of flavor. Use it for cooking vegetables and making cornstarch slurry.

c. Blanch the carrot and broccoli

This step is optional, but I always use it for a reason. 

The carrot and broccoli are harder vegetables. It is a bad idea to cook with others at the same time. You will expect other vegetables are already overcooked by the time the carrot pieces become tender. Although you may stir-fry the carrots and broccoli first and then add other fast-cooking vegetables in stages, prolonged stir-frying will make the carrot and broccoli less presentable. The oil in the pan may dirty the vegetables, and stir-frying tends to break up the broccoli florets.

Therefore, I blanch the carrot for five minutes and broccoli florets for four minutes, then finish by stir-frying the carrot and broccoli with the rest for a minute.  

3. Prepare the seasoning 

a. Prepare the flavorful sauce

There is no ‘standard’ stir-fry sauce, but most Chinese will likely use oyster sauce and light soy sauce in various proportions as the main ingredients. Besides both sauces, I include some Chinese rice wine, ground white pepper, salt, and sugar. I premix all the ingredients in a bowl. This can eliminate any chances of unintentionally adding the wrong amount or omitting an item.

Other seasonings you can add are sesame oil and rice vinegar. Since sesame oil is heat-sensitive, I prefer to add it to the wok in the last few seconds of stir-frying.

Chicken broth is unnecessary as fresh vegetables, chicken, and the savory sauce is enough to produce a wonderful flavor.

b. Cornstarch slurry

Combine the cornflour with water to form a slurry. Use the cornstarch slurry to thicken the sauce in the last thirty seconds. The cornflour required depends on how much liquid is still in the wok. Therefore, the amount may not be the same for each cooking. Add some water if you like to have more gravy. 

Chicken and vegetable stir-fry is quick to prepare, rich in vitamins and minerals with a balanced proportion of protein, carbohydrates, and fibers.

4. Cook the chicken and vegetable stir fry

a. The chicken 

I will start the stir-frying with the chicken and oil.

Heat all the oil this recipe requires into the wok (or a large pan) over low to medium heat. Add the sliced chicken pieces into it and start to stir fry.

There are two tips I would like to share.  

  • First, do not start with high heat. If you do so, high heat will cause the chicken pieces to stick onto the wok surface (unless you are using a non-stick pan) due to the cornflour in the marinade.  
  • Secondly, stir-fry (or you can pan-fry it like pan-frying steak) until it turns color and aromatic. This step makes a lot of difference to the final result as it creates aroma.

Once the chicken turns golden brown, remove and leave the excess oil in the wok.

Note: A well-seasoned wok is best for stir-frying. However, you can use a large nonstick skillet to stir fry.

b. The garlic and ginger

  • Coarsely chopped the garlic. I would not suggest mincing the garlic as minced garlic can burn quickly during sauteing.
  • Now use the remaining oil in the wok to saute the garlic and ginger slices. You may add some extra cooking oil if it is insufficient. The goal is to flavor the oil with garlic. The result is the flavorful chicken garlic oil, which will be used to stir-fry the vegetables.
  • Once the garlic turns aromatic, remove and set aside. Since we want to stir fry the vegetables with higher heat, the garlic will burn when we finish stir-frying the vegetables if you do not remove it.
  • Use the remaining oil in the wok to stir fry the vegetables.

Note: Fresh garlic tastes way better than garlic powder.

c. Stir fry the vegetables 

Now add the Chinese mushrooms to the wok. Have a few quick stirs. Next, turn your stove to high heat and stir fry the vegetables.

Since we have blanched the carrot and broccoli florets, all the remaining ingredients will be cooked in the same period. In other words, you can add all the vegetables to the wok now.

Here are two tips I would like to share:

  • Keep the wok at medium-high heat at all times. The goal is to stir fry the vegetables quickly, which is vital to retain the bright color and crunchiness.
  • Splash a tablespoon of water into the wok whenever you feel it is too dry. However, do not add too much water to keep the wok hot all the time. You can keep adding a tablespoon of water every fifteen seconds, but the amount also depends on the quantity you cook.

Add the stir-fry sauce. Flip and toss to combine the vegetables with the sauce. Add more water if you want to have more sauce eventually.

d. Final step to prepare the chicken and vegetable stir fry

  1. Once the vegetables are well combined with the flavored oil and stir fry sauce, return the cooked chicken and garlic to the wok.  
  2. Add half of the cornflour slurry to thicken the sauce.
  3. You may not need all the cornflour slurry to thicken the sauce. That is why I suggest adding half of it first, then deciding whether it is necessary to add the remainder. You should stop adding it once you get the desired consistency of the sauce.
  4. Finally, add the sesame oil, mix, and dish out.
  5. You can sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds and chopped green onions as garnish.

Note: If you like other easy stir-fry recipes, you may also be interested in trying out our stir-fry vegetables with garlic and braised tofu with vegetable recipes

Yield: 2 servings

Chicken and vegetable stir-fry

Chicken and vegetable stir-fry is quick to prepare, rich in vitamins and minerals with a balanced proportion of protein, carbohydrates, and fibers.

Chicken and vegetable stir-fry is an excellent dish in many ways. It is quick to prepare, rich in vitamins and minerals with a balanced proportion of protein, carbohydrates, and fibers.

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

Ingredients A

  • 300g chicken meat (thigh or breast meat)
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp cooking oil
  • 1 tsp cornstarch

Ingredients B

  • 30g Chinese dried mushrooms (dry weight)
  • 60g button mushrooms
  • 150g broccoli florets (after cut)
  • 70g baby corn
  • 60g red capsicums (after cut)
  • 80g carrot (after cut)
  • 6 cloves garlic (coarsely chopped)
  • 4 slices ginger

Ingredients C

Ingredients D

  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 tbsp water

Ingredient E

  • 2 tbsp cooking oil for stir-frying

Instructions

Preparation

  1. Marinate the chicken with ingredients A for 15 minutes.
  2. Soak the dried mushrooms overnight. Remove the stem and cut into strips
  3. Blanch the carrot for one minute and broccoli for four minutes in boiling water. Remove and drain.
  4. Prepare the sauce by combining all the ingredients in C except the sesame oil.

Cooking:

  1. Stir fry the chicken with 2 tbsp of cooking oil over low to medium heat until golden brown. Remove.
  2. Saute the garlic and ginger until aromatic. Remove.
  3. Add the Chinese mushrooms to the wok. Have a few quick stirs.
  4. Turn to high heat. Add the remaining ingredients.
  5. Add the stir fry sauce.
  6. Once the vegetables are well combined with the flavored oil and stir fry sauce, return the cooked chicken and sauteed garlic to the wok.
  7. Thicken with cornflour slurry (Ingredients D)
  8. Finally, add the sesame oil, mix, and dish out.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

2

Serving Size:

2 servings

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 862Total Fat: 50gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 40gCholesterol: 134mgSodium: 2969mgCarbohydrates: 55gFiber: 9gSugar: 11gProtein: 51g

This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix on 9/20/2019

Marilyn

Saturday 21st of March 2020

Thank you for sharing this recipe and tutorial! It came out better than anything I've ever tried before for stir fry. Your instructions re heat of pan, parboiling harder veggies, and steps by which to add ingredients was simple to follow and made such a difference. Blessings to you!

KP Kwan

Sunday 22nd of March 2020

Hi Marilyn, Thank you for trying my recipe and glad to know that it works and you enjoy it :) KP Kwan

Omoyemen Gani-yesufu

Monday 18th of November 2019

How so I keep the colours of vegetable bright and crunchy if this dish is to be served over an hour later for parties , do I still cool with this same method or blanche all the vegetables before stir fry?

KP Kwan

Tuesday 19th of November 2019

Hi Omoyemen, Let me share with you how do we do this in our restaurant for a catering order, in which they will put it on a buffet line and eat much later. 1. Cold with the same method. (Use ice water, then drain.) 2. Saute the garlic in the wok over low heat, but a little longer till slightly golden. 3. Constitute the sauce and combine with the garlic/oil over low heat. Wait until the sauce thickens, which means the cornstarch is already cooked. 4. Pour the drained vegetable into the wok, switch off the stove. Mix well and serve, Note that it is not 'stir-fried' anymore, but saute the garlic a little longer compensate for the loss of aroma due to not stir-frying the vegetable. The vegetable will be served much later, so there is no concern that it is piping hot. The vegetable wil stay fresh for hours.

I hope this method is useful to you too. Thanks. KP Kwan

Marsha Locke

Sunday 27th of October 2019

Hi KP Kwan. I am a Caribbean Lady and I just watched your video for the chicken and vegetable stir fry and I cannot wait to get the ingredients to try it! Thank you for sharing.

KP Kwan

Monday 28th of October 2019

Hi Marsha, Please try this recipe, and I hope you will like it :) KP Kwan

Shreeram Shirodkar

Monday 23rd of September 2019

since the children tend to stick to the surface of the wok due to the presence of cornstarch

Kindly Edit "CHILDREN"

KP Kwan

Tuesday 24th of September 2019

Thanks so much for pointing out the horrible typo error. I have already edit it.

KP Kwan

Sunday 22nd of September 2019

Hi, this is KP Kwan. I am happy to see you in this comment area, as you have read through my recipe. I am pleased to reply to any questions and comments as soon as possible.

Ellis Stewart

Saturday 27th of February 2021

Greetings KP Kwan,

We made your "Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry" last evening, and it was excellent! We followed your recipe and all your guidance precisely except for the length of time we blanched the carrots and the broccoli - we blanched the carrots for 3 minutes and the broccoli for two minutes, and that was a bit tool long. The carrots were approaching mushy - owing to the thickness of the slices, I suppose. The broccoli was nearly perfect, but just a mite too soft. We also did not return the garlic and ginger to the wok after cooking it. In any case, the result was outstanding, and we have labeled this recipe "EXCELLENT" in our binder of Asian recipes. Thanks for a great website, YouTube videos, and recipes!

Best Regards,

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