Chinese Chicken and Broccoli

The scallions, ginger, and garlic will be essential for creating the flavor profile for the spring rolls and the stir-fry. Begin by finely mincing the ginger and garlic. Thinly slice the scallions. Once these ingredients are cut, combine them together in a small bowl and set aside.

Chop the 2 heads of broccoli into florets.

Thinly slice 3 chicken breasts on a bias (see below). The chicken should be cut thin enough to cook quickly, since stir-frying is done at a high heat fairly quickly.

Coat the chicken with the egg (or leftover egg from the spring rolls, if you are making those too).

Dredge the coated chicken in approximately 1 cup of cornstarch. Toss until the chicken is evenly coated.

Heat the wok over medium to medium high heat with 2-3 Tablespoons of peanut oil. We used peanut oil because it has a high smoking point, but you can also use flaxseed oil or any oil that doesn’t burn quickly.

Once the wok is heated, carefully begin adding the chicken. You’ll be cooking the chicken in batches, so only put a handful in at a time. Quickly toss the chicken until it’s browned. (If your chicken sticks to the wok, you may have added it to the wok before it was hot enough)

Place the browned chicken on a plate to the side. For the stir-fry sauce, mix 1/4 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup oyster sauce, and 1/4 cup soy sauce. Set aside.

Add another 2 Tablespoons oil to the wok. Add the remaining GGS and sweat the mixture, paying careful attention not to burn it.

Add the broccoli florets and toss. Once the broccoli is mixed with the GGS, add 1/2 cup water and cover to steam the broccoli. This will take approximately 30-60 seconds.

Pour the sauce over the broccoli and toss until the broccoli is coated evenly.

Add the browned chicken and 1/2 cup water. Stir until mixed and cover to steam until the chicken is cooked through and the broccoli is tender.

The cornstarch coating on the chicken will thicken the sauce. Doesn’t that look tasty?

Since we were celebrating my birthday, we brought out the candlesticks, fancy chop sticks, and some white wine. (Did I mention it was my birthday? I loooove birthdays!)

This is our homemade version of “Chinese take-out” — at least when we have the time 😉 Since this recipe made enough food for 4, we have plenty of left-overs for tomorrow!