I love a good stir-fry! They are usually quick (yay!), reasonably healthy (yay!) and scrumptious (triple yay!). The perfect quick/healthy/scrumptious thing to make at the end of a long and not so scrumptious day. So break out the skillet (or if you are fancier than me, kitchen equipement-wise, the wok) and away we go!
If your supermarket carries chicken tenders, they are the best and easiest thing to use for this recipe. My supermarket toys with me by sometimes having them and sometimes not, so I tend to grab a few of them each time they are there and tossing them in the freezer for chicken tender emergencies. If you can’t find them, simply make your own by taking a regular old boneless chicken breast and slicing it up into pieces that are about three inches long, a inch or so wide, and about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Approximately. Don’t drive yourself crazy.
Once you are all set with the chicken, you’re going to mix up a quick sauce of chicken broth, soy sauce, cornstarch and honey that is going to turn into something more delicious than any take-out you’ve ever eaten. Now comes the fun part – the stir-frying! Add a little olive oil to your frying pan and crank up the heat until it is HOT. Add the chicken and stir it around until it is cooked through – with those small pieces it is going to take about 3-5 minutes. Finish it off in the last 30 seconds with some chopped garlic and then transfer it to a plate.
Next you are going to toss in a few of these. You can either cut them in bite sized pieces, or just snap off the stems and let everyone fend for themselves like I do.
Stir these guys around for about three minutes and then add your chicken back in, along with the cashews. Stir for another minutes (we know understand why “stir-fry” is such a great name) and now pour in your honey sauce. Stir stir stir, and in about one more minute it is going to thicken up into a gorgeous, silky-sweet sauce.
Now all that is left for you to do is pour the whole thing over a bowl of spaghetti, give it a toss or two, and dig in. Who needs take-out ever again??
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
4 tablespoons soy sauce
4 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup honey
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound chicken tenders (or boneless chicken breast, cut up into 3 inch strips)
2 minced garlic cloves
2 cups fresh string beans, trimmed
1/2 cup salted cashews
1/2 pound freshly cooked spaghetti
Directions
1. Whisk together broth, soy sauce, and cornstarch. Stir in honey.
2. Add olive oil to large skillet and heat over high heat for about 2 minutes. Add chicken and stir until cooked through, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic in the last 30 seconds or so of cooking. Transfer to plate.
3. Add string beans to skillet and stir for about 3 minutes. Return chicken to skillet along with string beans and stir for another minute.
4. Give the sauce one more stir and add to skillet. Cook until sauce is slightly thickened and everything is coated well, about one minute.
5. Pour chicken mixture over hot spaghetti and toss until combined. Serve at once.
2.2
Still Hungry?
Chicken Sesame Noodles [3], from Framed Cooks
Sake Steamed Chicken [4], from Framed Cooks
Gung Bao Chicken [5], from Leite’s Culinaria