I make a lot of rice. So much so, that while at the market last week, I passed by some insane endcap display with 50 pound bags of rice stacked on top of each other, and actually considered buying one. I even did the math in my head to see if it would be a better deal.
Curious to see how many other people feel about the grain, I asked everyone on Facebook if it would be easier to give up rice or potatoes. In the end, it was about a 50/50 split. I obviously chose rice. Without blinking. (However, let it be known that I have long mourned the loss of potatoes in my life, and I cannot wait for my kids to get on board. Who ever heard of a kid not liking potatoes?! They’re not normal.)
Anyway, do I love rice because I love a good stir-fry, or do I love a good stir-fry because I love rice? Chicken and the egg… regardless, I am a sucker for a good stir-fry. Especially when it includes soy sauce, oyster sauce, garlic, and wine – which almost always screams success.
For me, deciding to make this was a no brainer, since all these ingredients are staples in my house. Including a 50 pound bag of rice.
Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry
Serves 4
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
• 1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 6 scallions chopped, whites and greens parts separated
• 4 cloves garlic minced, divided
• 1 1/2-inch piece peeled fresh ginger minced, divided
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons raw sugar
• 1/2 tablespoon + 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 tablespoon + 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons xiaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
• 2 tablespoons dark sesame oil
• 1/2 cup water
• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 medium heads broccoli, chopped into florets
• 1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
Directions
In a medium bowl, toss the chicken with the scallion whites, half the garlic and ginger, soy sauce, sugar, 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch, 1/2 tablespoon Kosher salt, xiaoxing wine, and sesame oil. Marinate at room temperature for 15 minutes.
In a small bowl, mix the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch with 1/2 cup water and set aside.
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet or wok over high heat. Add the broccoli and the remaining garlic, ginger, 1/4 cup water, 1/4 teaspoon salt and chili garlic sauce. Stir-fry until the broccoli is bright green and tender-crisp, about 4 minutes, adding a tablespoon of water to prevent sticking. Transfer to a plate.
Pour another 2 tablespoons oil in the pan and add the chicken mixture. Stir continuously until the chicken is brown and cooked through, 5-6 minutes. Add the oyster sauce, stir, then return the broccoli to the pan and toss to heat through. Stir in the reserved cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil to thicken (add a couple more tablespoons of water to make a bit more sauce, if desired.) Remove from heat and toss in the chopped scallion greens.
Serve over white rice.
I have been making this dish for years since I found it on your site a long time ago. It still remains to be the best asain dish I have ever made. I freaked out a little when I went to veryculinary.com and couldnt find the recipe!! Luckily google found your new site. I didn’t know you had changed sites. My heart almost stopped when I thought I had lost this little gem of a recipe. Thank you for posting this.
Amazing dish. Very flavorful and had just enough bite to it. Only change for me would be to reduce salt by half. No other changes otherwise. My family scarfed it down so fast there was no leftovers. Oh yeah, one other change. I would make, to double the recipe so I could enjoy another serving later.
As far as rice verses potatoes…potatoes wins hands down in our family. Nothing like a quick meal with potatoes and cheese. Rarely does a day go by where we don’t have a healthy serving of “pommes de terre.”
This dish is amazing!
Even more amazing when served over rice (of course!)!
I had to make a few substitutes for some of the sauces that I didn’t have on hand, rice vinegar works well for the marinade.
OMG. Wholy S*** this recipe is good!
The flavors are ‘johnny on the spot’.
I have never made anything asian before.
I used Trader Joe’s Chicken Tenders diced up.
Homemade stir fry has never really done it for me. But recently, we found a KILLER recipe (ahh, there are days I wish I still blogged) and I’ve been hooked. This one looks pretty tempting, too.
P.S. Rice would win the rice/potato debate ANY day. :)
I would definitely choose rice over potatoes any day, too. My favorite is Mexican rice, but for this recipe definitely white rice is best.
Granted, my kid is only 1, but she REFUSES to eat mashed potatoes AND rice. These kids, what the heck!?!? Who does want mashed potatoes… oy vey.
You actually lifted a 50 lb bag of rice into your cart… Nice work!
This dish looks fantastic, and I know my kid will like it, she loves chicken and broccoli.
Stir fry always makes a great meal!
I love all the ingredients, so this has to be good. It’s going on my “to make” list. Also glad we don’t have to give up either rice or potatoes.
add some cashew nuts :-) they really fit welol with chikken and brocoli.
Do I have to give up either… ? GREG
I would give up rice before potatoes. Although I love rice but potatoes are just sooo much better! Mashed, fried, steamed…whatever.
Hmm potatoes or rice…well. Are we talking regular potatoes or sweet potatoes? Because I could NEVER give up sweet potatoes. But I could also NEVER give up sweet potato sushi rolls. So really…this is quite a dilemma.
This looks terrific!
I missed this on FB! I could give up potatoes a whole lot easier than rice.
I totally want this on my menu asap, because nothing is better than a stir fry over rice (okay, well, a curry over rice hits that same sweet spot for me, but you get the gist).
Oh Jenna, I looove curry/thai also. Be still my heart.
This worked out rather well, I defrosted chicken last night, but John got home at 10:30 and I didn’t bother to cook it. Hmmm wonder why? BUT, I do have all the ingredients on hand and you just answered my “What am I going to do with this chicken” question….
well, you know I aim to please…so my work here is done ;-)
I made this for the third time this week. I have more leftovers for lunch today in fact. This time I also cooked with sauce instead of flakes. :) Either way is great. I also use almost twice as much broccoli because I am compelled. :P Glad you guys like this one. I think it’s a great permanent rotation recipe (I hate that phrase, but you know what I mean), especially for those of us who try to eat a little healthier.
I forgot to mention in the post that I have made it twice. And I think the second time I added more broccoli, as well. This and my beef and broccoli are the only two dishes I can think of where my kids will eat the broccoli (I’m tellin’ you, the sauce is magic), so clearly it will be made a lot.