Chicken And Broccolini Stir-Fry

 

Today is Wednesday.

Dear Lord. My kids finally went back to school! I took out some boneless, skinless chicken thighs in the morning and then made no further plans for them, because I was too busy running errands and thinking straight. I knew I needed to break up our days of sweet potatoes and side salads so I decided I would use the one vegetable I had left on hand: broccoli! I seriously am a much more responsible grocery shopper when it’s not Christmas break and I’m not so busy eating cookies and shopping the sale racks of every store.

Anyways, this afternoon was chaos. My parents came over and as soon as they left, I let Sienna have a play date because her friend has a fun mom. So then I had fun mom friend, five kids, husband working from home, and eventually our piano teacher all over during my prime cook time. I was left at 5:00pm with wild-eyed, hungry children; a messy kitchen; ringing ears from piano-playing and idiotic screaming; and a worn-out husband who was on the couch, done with work for the day! Steam shoots out ears.

SO, I pulled my best trick of “The only snacks you may have while I am cooking are raw veggies,” and got my four year-old to eat maybe 115 carrots and my girls to mainly leave me alone. Allegra had a few but she wasn’t pleased with my trickery. Sienna isn’t falling for that no way, no how. Unless it’s something I am using in my dish and she feels like she is cleverly stealing the pepper strip or cucumber slice from me. Anyways, then I turned on an educational TV show called “Chopped,” entranced the children, and got to work. 

PS: Chopped is the best show since Game of Thrones and usually has a better ending. It’s what got me into cooking and helps me think on my feet to use the ingredients I have on hand that can be substitutes for what an interesting recipe calls for… which is the theme of what I made tonight: Substitutions.

Chicken and Broccolini Stir-Fry very loosely interpreted

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

½ large egg white Save the other half and the yolk for an omelette.

1 T. mirin (sweet Japanese rice wine) or dry sherry I used white wine vinegar and hoped for the best.

3 T. cornstarch

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into ½ inch cubes I used thighs. I don’t normally recommend interchanging chicken parts, but as long as you stay consistent with the presence or absence of bones and watch your cooking times, it can work out in a pinch.

¼ cup oyster sauce (fresh out, used sesame oil and soy sauce combo and crossed fingers)

2 bunches broccolini, stems removed, cut into pieces I used broccoli.

2 T. extra-virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 T. minced peeled ginger I had to use 1 tsp. dried ginger.

1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced I didn’t have any, but these could be a produce staple they are so often called for.

4-5 baby bell peppers (any color), sliced into thin rings

1 to 2 red jalapeno peppers, seeded and thinly sliced I had green, which are the same thing. I only used one big one and only put one sliver on my son’s portion and gave the rest to my husband and myself. My son is the most ambitious with spice. He tried it and screamed but seemed proud of himself.

¼ cup sliced almonds or chopped cashews, toasted I used cashews, only sprinkled on adult portions. We have a nut allergy in the house, so my kids are suspicious of nuts.

I also added in half a head of a small purple cabbage that I wanted to get rid of, in lieu of serving this all over rice.

Instructions

    1) Bring a pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, whisk the egg white, mirin and 1 T. cornstarch in a medium bowl. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Whisk the remaining 2 T. cornstarch, the oyster sauce and ½ cup of water in a small bowl.

    2) Add the broccolini to the boiling water and cook until crisp-tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water.

    3) Heat 1 T. olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring until no longer pink, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Increase the heat to high and add the remaining 2 T. olive oil. Add the garlic and ginger; stir-fry 30 seconds. Add the scallions (and/or cabbage) and peppers; stir-fry 1 more minute. Add the chicken, broccolini and nuts and stir-fry 2 more minutes.

    4) Reduce the heat to medium, whisk the oyster sauce mixture and add to the skillet. Cook, stirring, until thickened, about 3 minutes.

I found this all needed a dash of soy sauce, but that may be because I messed with the sauces so much. Allegra asked if we could use those clingy Romaine leaves to make these into Asian tacos and I dropped my mic and said my work as a mother is complete. They all thought that was so fun!

NOTE ON ASIAN STIR-FRYS: It’s worth it to go to any grocery store and pick up these sauces and oils in the International Aisle. I keep most of them on hand but just happened to not have the ones that are necessary. I try to keep peanut oil, sesame oil, soy sauce, rice wine, etc. This will open up many (though heavy on the chopping) recipes to you that are easy to follow, are delicious, are often gluten-free and use a variety of brightly-colored vegetables. Don’t be intimidated.