Stir-Fried Chicken

Photo: flickr user Gudlyf

Ingredients

1 pound Chicken breast, boneless

12 Mushrooms (white)

pound Broccoli, fresh (or 1 pk frozen)

cup Chicken broth

2 tablespoons Soy sauce

2 tablespoons Sherry

1 tablespoon Cornstarch

1 Egg white

teaspoon Salt

cup Vegetable oil (peanut oil is best, but teaspoon Cornstarch

6 ounces Bamboo shoots, canned (optional)

6 ounces Cashew nuts, broken into large pieces

Preparation

Cut the boneless chicken breast into bite-sized pieces. Wash and slice the mushrooms. If using fresh broccoli, wash and cut it up into bite-sized pieces. If using frozen broccoli, heat it or partially thaw it first.

Combine chicken broth, soy sauce, sherry and about 1 T cornstarch. Stir well and set aside.

Combine beaten egg white, salt, about 1/2 t oil and about 2 t cornstarch.

Add the chicken cubes to the mixture and stir until the chicken is well-coated. In a wok or deep cast iron pan, heat about 3 T vegetable oil until hot. Add the chicken pieces in small batches and stir continuously until golden brown. After each batch is finished, remove and drain. Add oil sparingly as needed.

Stir fry the mushrooms in the wok. Stir fry the broccoli in the wok.

Combine the chicken, mushrooms, broccoli, bamboo shoots and cashew nuts in the wok. Stir fry to get everything warm again. Add the bouillon-cornstarch sauce and stir until thickened.

Serve with rice. Don't forget to start the rice so that it will be done at the same time as the chicken.

NOTES:* Chinese stir-fried chicken with broccoli and nuts.

Yield: Serves 2-3.

* Bamboo shoots are available in cans at Chinese grocery stores. Fresh broccoli is preferable to frozen, and it should be stir-fried for only a few minutes to keep it crunchy. Endless variations of this basic recipe are possible. Beef, pork, or other lean meats can be substituted for the chicken. Tofu cubes or brown beans can be used to make this a vegetarian recipe. Chopped almonds can be used instead of cashews. Water chestnuts are a delightful addition. Green or red bell peppers can be used instead of broccoli.

Difficulty: easy.

Time: 45 minutes.

Precision: no need to measure.