By Martha Rose Shulman
- Total Time
- 15 minutes, plus 30 minutes' refrigeration
- Rating
- 5(795)
- Notes
- Read community notes
I used green peppers only for this stir-fry. Try to use a mix of hot and sweet peppers, and feel free to use red, yellow or orange ones if you want to introduce some color. The chicken is “velveted” before stir-frying; a good name for this technique as the texture of the chicken remains velvety and moist after stir-frying.
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Ingredients
Yield:Serves 4
- 1pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut across the grain in ¼-inch thick slices
- 1tablespoon egg white, lightly beaten
- 2teaspoons cornstarch
- 1½teaspoons plus 1 tablespoon rice wine or dry sherry
- ½teaspoon sugar
- 2tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 1teaspoon low sodium soy sauce
- 2tablespoons peanut oil, rice bran oil or canola oil
- 1tablespoon minced ginger
- 2fat garlic cloves, minced
- 1pound green peppers, with at least one of them a hot pepper such as an Anaheim
- ¼cup cashew pieces
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
305 calories; 14 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 6 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 29 grams protein; 232 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
In a large bowl stir together the egg white, cornstarch, 1½ teaspoons of the rice wine or sherry, salt to taste and 1½ teaspoons water. When you can no longer see any cornstarch add the chicken and stir together until coated. Cover the bowl and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Step
2
Combine the remaining rice wine or sherry, the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, and sugar in a small bowl and set it near your wok.
Step
3
Fill a medium-size saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and turn the heat down so that the water is at a bare simmer. Carefully add the chicken to the water, stirring so that the pieces don’t clump. Cook until the chicken turns opaque on the surface but is not cooked through, about 1 minute. Drain in a colander set over a bowl.
Step
4
Heat a 14-inch flat-bottomed wok or 12-inch steel skillet over high heat until a drop of water evaporates within a second or two when added to the pan. Add the remaining oil by pouring it down the sides of the pan and swirling the pan, then add the garlic, ginger and chile and stir-fry for no more than 10 seconds. Add the peppers and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the chicken, cashews and hoisin sauce mixture and salt to taste. Stir-fry for 1 to 2 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through, and serve with grains or noodles.
- Advanced preparation: This is all last-minute though the vegetables can be prepped well in advance and refrigerated.
Ratings
5
out of 5
795
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Cooking Notes
Always learning
Adaptations:
*julienne the peppers (receipe omits instruction, but it's obvious from the photo)
*toast the cashews
*stir-fry in 1 T hot chili oil
*after adding sauce, reduce heat to medium high and cover wok for a few minutes to thoroughly cook the chicken and peppers
*add cashews immediately before serving
sharon
The recipe states add the garlic, ginger, and chili....no mention of a specific chili in the recipe unless it's referencing the Anaheim in the pound of green peppers. I think flavor & heat could be increased if a hotter chili is added in this step, such a thai, serrano or even an jalapeno chile. Thoughts?
Martha Rose Shulman
It's Chinese rice wine, but dry sherry will work. Mirin is much sweeter.
Robin
Absolutely delicious. Definitely tripled the sauce. And used rice vinegar instead of sherry or rice wine. Also, I added a bit of chili oil to the recipe since I did not have any hot peppers. Used snow peas, red peppers and bokchoy for veggies.
macd
Agree with other reviewers that the sugar isn’t needed. Added some other vegetables which was great. I did find it needed a bit more kick.
Anne
This was surprisingly bland, and almost sweet. The cooking method for the chicken is excellent though--I'm going to hang onto that.
Thomas
I made this with about 2lbs of chicken, 4 bell peppers, and I tripled the sauce. That seems to be a more practical amount for >2 people, or leftovers, or gluttons.Don’t skip the chicken velveting.Skip the sugar. Hoisin is already super sweet.I agree this recipe needs more heat. Add chili garlic sauce to the cooking liquid if you have it. I also threw in a few dried chilis with the garlic, and skipped the spicy pepper which I didn’t have.Roast, then chop/smash the cashews and add last.
Momo
Loved this, but did double the sauce for 1/2 batch (8 oz. Chicken and 8 oz. Peppers. Full recipe, recommend 3 or 5 times the sauce. Delicious!
Anna
Very bland, doubled the sauce, but it still wasn't quite enough. It wasn't bad, but needed more seasoning and less sugar. Also the cook time was longer than expected for the vegetables and the chicken.
Claire
Substitute cornstarch with all purpose flour, for every one tablespoon of cornstarch, put in 2 tablespoons of flour
Patricia Lee Riley
Quick to cook - but the prep takes longer...
kate
I followed the recipe closely - and I liked it a lot. I liked the little bit of sugar, added a 1/2 tsp chile crisp to the sauce, thought the sauce amount was adequate. Recipe does not specify how to cut the peppers - see photo. Recipe says to drain chicken in a colander over a bowl - why? Weird instruction added to the cleanup.
Jared
Try without added sugar. More cashews and hot peppers.
nutmeg
Delicious! Did not have rice wine, subbed chicken broth and a little lime zest for zip
Jenn Johnson
Made this with a mix of veggies that I had on hand. The chicken was awesome—tender, juicy, flavorful. Will definitely use this velveting technique for other stir fries. The sauce was a little bland for my taste. I added a little rice vinegar to cut the sweetness. This took longer to prep than I expected…and used a lot of dishes. Definitely a fun meal to make with a friend who will help you wash dishes.
Sabina
This recipie is the one my husband and I used to inaugurate our new heavyweight ceramic-coated cast iron wok, and it was nothing less than divine!
Kathey R
Used other reviewers suggestions and thought it was delicious! Tripled the sauce plus added ~ 2 tbsp of chili paste, NO SUGAR. Doubled garlic and ginger. Added broccoli and squash and cooked veges longer. Husband thought it was fantastic.
Miles
Needs chili oil - bland without
Erin T
Good weeknight meal - would definitely make again. Made a few adjustments - doubled the sauce (as another comment said), added zucchini and mushrooms, and extended the cook time on vegetables (I think my skillet was somehow not hot enough - maybe different with a wok?).
Barry Hudson
Very fresh and delicious. Used 3 colours of pepper, and as recommended added snap peas and bok choy. No sugar. Definitely a keeper.
Patricia
I added celery as well as the chili oil. I also cooked it longer than stated in the recipe.
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