Easy Chicken Stir-Fry Recipe
Everyone should have five or six great dinners they can cook from memory and in less than half an hour. These quick, easy "weeknight" dinners should be crowd pleasers that are also complete meals, i.e. they feature protein, veggies, and a starch. Oh, and they should taste great, too. This easy chicken stir fry recipe from Catherine Brookes of Blue Sky Eating hits all those marks right in the bullseye. It's one of those recipes that will become a go-to in your home from the very first time you try it.
And if you love the dish as laid out here, don't be afraid to use this stir fry meal as a starting point, adding your own twists. You could swap out the chicken for tofu, or add in onions and sliced carrots. You can spice it up with Sriracha, red pepper flakes, or chopped chiles. "Stir fry is such a simple and healthy dish to make yourself at home, but you can pack so much flavor in, too," Brookes says. And pack in the flavor you should!
Gather your ingredients for the stir fry
To make this quick and easy dish — which is a complete meal when served with rice, noodles, or your preferred starch — you'll need cornstarch, soy sauce, white vinegar, honey, minced garlic, grated ginger, untoasted sesame oil, diced skinless and boneless chicken thighs, olive oil, roughly chopped broccoli, a sliced red bell pepper, snap peas, and cashews.
"I love adding cashews to stir frys to give a little variety to the texture, and that nutty crunch goes deliciously with the flavors of the sauce," says Brookes.
Prepare the sauce and cook the chicken
Combine the cornstarch with a tablespoon of water and mix into a slurry. Next, add the soy sauce, vinegar, honey, garlic, and ginger. Mix these all well to combine them into a sauce and then set it aside.
Next, heat the sesame oil in a large skillet on a medium-high setting. Add the chicken and sauté it, stirring occasionally, until it is cooked through. This should take about 5 to 7 minutes.
Cook the vegetables
Remove the cooked chicken from the pan and set it aside, then add the olive oil. Toss in the broccoli, red pepper, and sugar snap peas until they have lightly browned — that will take about 3 to 5 minutes. "Be careful not to overcook the veggies or they can become a little soggy," Brookes warns, adding, "you want them to retain some crispness and bite."
Bring all the ingredients together
Add the sauce, chicken, and cashews to the pan with the veggies and stir well, allowing everything to cook for another couple of minutes. And that's it! Serve the stir fry with rice or noodles, and if you're looking for other serving ideas, Brookes says "you could always serve it as a side dish alongside other meats or with Asian dishes such as dumplings or spring rolls."
Just enjoy it soon, as it will only keep well for 1 day in the fridge!
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1-inch knob ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 tablespoon untoasted sesame oil
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 5 to 6 thighs), diced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ large head of broccoli, roughly chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 1 cup sugar snap peas
- ⅓ cup cashews
- rice or noodles, for serving
- Mix the cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water and mix into a slurry.
- Add the soy sauce, white vinegar, honey, garlic, and ginger. Mix to combine and set aside.
- Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet on a medium-high setting, then add the chicken. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until cooked through (about 5 to 7 minutes).
- Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
- Add the olive oil to the pan and cook the broccoli, red pepper, and sugar snap peas until lightly browned (about 3 to 5 minutes).
- Add the sauce, chicken, and cashews to the pan and stir well, allowing everything to cook for another 2 minutes.
- Serve with rice or noodles.
| Calories per Serving | 531 |
| Total Fat | 23.4 g |
| Saturated Fat | 4.8 g |
| Trans Fat | 0.1 g |
| Cholesterol | 249.5 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 21.2 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 4.3 g |
| Total Sugars | 9.0 g |
| Sodium | 727.7 mg |
| Protein | 58.8 g |
