Chicken Broccoli Stir-Fry

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This chicken broccoli stir-fry with noodles is better than a takeaway and gets done in as quick as 15 minutes. Made with chicken breast, broccoli, ginger, garlic, and a few other pantry staples.

How often do you get kids that love broccoli? Well, my kids love broccoli. Lucky, right? This one is a family favorite along with our chicken and beans stir fry and beef stir fry.

There are so many reasons to love stir fry dishes.

• The absolute best thing for working mom like me that have no time to cook.
• Also, you can use frozen veggies so your prep time is almost zero.
• And, veggies stay crisp and retain all their nutrition.
• In addition, noodles take only 4 minutes to cook.
• Chicken is a much healthy meat option and cooks faster.
• Stir-fry is high-heat cooking and cooks so fast meaning dinner in less than 15 minutes is a possibility.
• And, Asian cooking is usually dependent on prepared store brought sauces, which have a long (really long) shelf life. Therefore, you can use them for a long time for such easy quick dishes.

Table of Content

• Ingredients and substitute
• Step by step instructions (pin)
• Frequently asked questions
• You may also like
• Recipe

About this stir fry

A stir-fry if done correctly is an absolute treat. The meat has to be well cooked, yet smoky not steam. The veggies have to be cooked al-Dante meaning cooked but with a bite not soft and not mushy. Getting it right means following these three golden rules.

1. The right pan for a stir-fry is a wok. If you don't have a wok use, a light sauté pan that you can heat on medium to high. Never use non-stick pots or heavy bottom pans. Non-stick will get ruined, and the heavy bottom pan will create steam.
2. Mise en plas or prepare before you stir-fry. A stir-fry is a quick dish which means you have to get all the things ready before you turn that heat on. Cut the ingredients you need, prepare the sauce, have the garnish chopped. Keep that serving platter on hand so you can take it off the heat quickly.
3. Quick-cooking - Most stir-fry dishes take not more than 7 to 10 minutes on the heat. The idea of stir-fry is to cook quickly on high heat so keep that flame on high or medium-high. Use a splash of water when necessary to bring down the temperature of the heat in the pan. Never leave the wok unattended (yup, don't answer that phone)

Ingredients and substitute

• Chicken - Breast meat works best for stir fry because it cooks quickly and absorbs the sauce well. 
• Broccoli - A great veggie to stir-fry because it cooks quickly and still looks bright and vibrant.  And don't throw away the stems. Rather, chop them up smaller and add them to the pan first. This will cook them and still keep them crunchy.
• Onions - Sliced thickly, these add a nice bite to the dish. And if you don't like onions, you can also slice them up thin, which adds flavor to the sauce as well. 
• Garlic and ginger - Ain't no stir-fry without these two flavor boosters and they are best used fresh.
• Herbs - I love cilantro. And yet, parsley is most commonly used in stir-frys. 
• Cashew nuts - These add a nice bite to the dish. While you can use any nuts you like, cashews are most commonly used in Asian cooking. 

Step by step instructions (pin)

• Prep the chicken - Clean, wash, and pat dry the chicken. Cut into bite-size cubes.
  Tip - since I am using broccoli today I cut the chicken into one-inch cubes. But, you can also cut them into strips
• Marinade - In a bowl, combine all the marinade ingredients.
  Tip - It is best to use low sodium soy sauce which is less salty. But, if you use regular make sure to add less salt in the recipe.
• Marinate the chicken - Add the marinade to the chicken. Stir well and set aside.
  Tip - you can leave the chicken to marinate for 30 minutes on the counter or up to 12 hours in the fridge.
• Broccoli - Wash and separate broccoli into florets. Slice the stems into small pieces and keep them aside.
  Tip - broccoli stems are tougher and take longer to cook so keep them on the side. We will add them to the pan earlier.
• Veggies - Slice the onions and separate the slices. Thinly slice the garlic and ginger. Roughly chop the parsley and scallions - set aside
• Sauce - Combine all the sauce ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
  Tip - cornstarch will settle to the bottom so make sure to stir it again before adding it to the pan
• Boil noodles as per package directions and set aside.

Stir-fry

• Cashew nuts - add ½ tbsp oil in a wok or saute pan. Stir fry the cashew nuts until lightly toasted. Remove from the pan on a paper towel.
• Chicken - To the same wok or wide saute pan add another tablespoon of oil. Add the chicken pieces in a single layer. Cook for a minute then flip to the other side and cook another minute. Toss with a spatula and cook for 2 minutes more. Remove from the pan and keep warm
  Tip - avoid tossing for the first two minutes this will give the chicken some color from the initial cooking.
• To the same wok or saute pan, add the remaining oil. Stir fry the onion, broccoli stems, and slices of ginger and garlic on medium-high for 2 minutes.
• Next, add the broccoli and 2 tbsp water. Cook on medium-high until broccoli is tender
  Tip - water creates steam and helps cook the broccoli quickly.
• Once the broccoli is almost tender return the chicken and cashews back to the pan.
• Season with salt and pepper. Then add the sauce and combine well.
  Tip - by this time both the chicken and broccoli should be cooked. The sauce will coat everything well and any juices in the pan will get thicken with the cornstarch. If necessary you can add a few tablespoons of water to help bring everything together.
• Taste and adjust for seasoning. Finally, add the parsley and scallions
• Serve hot over boiled noodles.

Frequently asked questions

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Recipe

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