Spicy Szechuan Chicken Stir Fry
I’m not sure what’s going on with me lately but I’ve been craving all things that can come out of a wok. Do you get that way? All hung up on one certain cuisine that you can’t seem to get out of your head? Maybe it’s because when I’m wok-cooking the dish is usually super quick to turn out and/or because it’s served with noodles or rice and can be eaten with chopsticks. Not that I claim to be an expert when it comes to using chopsticks. I do like to pretend for a hot second that I’m a pro until I accidentally fling something at someone, which turns into me spearing the pieces of chicken until those are gone then I grab a spoon and go for the rest.
This spicy stir-fry is soooo easy. I prepped my sauce, meat and all my veggies and garnishes while everyone was at work and school {but you could easily do this the night before} so when it was time to make dinner all I had to do was make the rice and get the wok smoking hot and the rest was history.
Here is how it all went down.
In a small bowl add in the sesame oil.
The chicken broth.
Soy sauce.
Rice vinegar.
This is the chile paste. This is what gives this dish its heat. In my house we like it spicy but you could adjust the heat by adding more or less to your taste. You should be able to find this in the ethnic isle of most major grocery stores.
For this spicy-Szechuan add in two and a half teaspoons and add it to the bowl.
Add in the cornstarch, this will thicken the sauce up when it hits the hot wok.
Season it all with a half teaspoon of salt. The tamari adds its own salty goodness so be mindful not to over salt this.
Whisk together and set aside.
Remove the outer “cheeks” of the peppers and slice.
Wash and cut the snow peas on a diagonal, why… because it’s purty!
Peel the outer layers of an onion and slice vertically from the root to the tip.
So you have these beautiful slices of onions.
Peel about an inch, inch and a half of fresh ginger with a spoon.
Slice, dice and mince the bejesus out of it until it’s in tiny smithereens.
Press a couple of large garlic cloves or mince up a tablespoon.
For the garnish, you’ll want to slice up some fresh green onions, about a 1/4 cup.
And roughly chop a quarter cup of lightly salted peanuts. These add texture and a fabulous nuttiness.
As I said before, this prep can all be done earlier in the day, or the night before making this recipe an ideal weeknight meal.
In a hot wok, add in a teaspoon of sesame oil and a tablespoon of grapeseed oil. If you don’t have any grapeseed then coconut or extra light olive oil will work too.
Add in the pound of cubed chicken tenderloins and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.
Remove to a plate for a moment. If you wait for the wok to get hot {like it’s suppose to be} then you should get nice golden pieces of chicken, not this lovely shade of pale. Don’t be impatient like me. WAIT FOR THE WOK!
Add the remaining tablespoon of grapeseed oil and dump in all those fresh veggies, ginger and garlic and stir-fry those for a minute or two.
Pour in the chile/broth mixture and stir until thickened.
Add the chicken back in and cook for 4-5 minutes more.
Your veggies should still be colorful yet tender. Ohmygosh this smells fantastic!!
I like to drizzle a little more of the tamari over top of my Szechuan bowl, my husband like sriracha because he’s a glutton for punishment and to him there’s no such thing as TOO hot. Whichever way you choose, don’t forget to sprinkle each bowl with the fresh sliced green onion and chopped peanuts and enjoy. Absolutely one of my favorite weeknight meals! Packed with flavor and healthy vegetables… pshhht who needs take-out?
Spicy Szechuan Chicken Stir-Fry
Yield: serves 4
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon plus one teaspoon Dark Sesame Oil, divided
1/2 cup Low-Sodium Chicken Broth
2 Tablespoons Tamari {or low sodium Soy Sauce}
1 Tablespoon Rice Vinegar
2-1/2 teaspoons Chile Paste {such as Sambal Oelek}
2 teaspoons Cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
2 tablespoons Grapeseed Oil, divided
1 pound Chicken Tenderloins, cubed
1 yellow Bell Pepper, sliced into strips
1 red Bell Pepper, sliced into strips
1 cup Snow Peas, cut diagonally
1 small Red Onion, sliced vertically
1-1/2 tablespoons peeled and minced Ginger
1 tablespoon Fresh Garlic, pressed or minced
2 cups Long-Grain White or Brown Rice {for serving}
1/4 cup sliced Green Onions {for garnish}
1/4 cup lightly salted Peanuts, roughly chopped {for garnish}
adapted from Cooking Light Magazine
Directions:
In a small bowl or measuring cup; add two teaspoons of the sesame oil, broth, tamari, rice vinegar, chile paste, cornstarch and salt. Stir to combine.
Heat up your wok over medium-high heat. Add a teaspoon of sesame seed oil plus a tablespoon of grapeseed oil to the hot wok, swirl the oil to coat. Add in the cube chicken and stir-fry 2-3 minutes. Remove to a plate for a moment.
Add remaining tablespoon of grapeseed oil, swirl and add in the peppers, snow peas, onion, ginger and garlic. Stir-fry the veggies for 1-2 minutes until heated through but still firm. Add broth mixture and cook for 30 seconds or until thickened. Add chicken back in to the wok and cook for 4-5 more minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
Divide the two cups of cooked rice among four bowls, top with a cup of the Szechuan chicken and veggies. Garnish with a few green onions and chopped peanuts.
Over the past few years I’ve been on a mission to find and create recipes that I can make from scratch. I hope you enjoy the recipes on this blog as they are tried and true from my kitchen to yours! (
I love quick stir fries! I don't have a wok so I just use a regular pan. I haven't made chicken stir fry in a while though, so I'm glad I found this. I also like things super spicy so this sounds perfect.
SEEEEERIOUSLY. need.need.need.
This looks amazing! I love spicy stirfry dishes….yum!!!
This looks yummy laurie..Perfectly made..
Aarthi
http://www.yummytummyaarthi.com/
I have been exactly that way lately. We've eaten at least three Asian-style meals in the last week and I have one more planned this week. LOVE this. The flavors are perfect!
I tore this recipe out of the magazine. It looked so good! Ingredient list was super long, but I'm going to have to try it sometime. I just love all those bright vibrant colors! I bet this was amazing!
What a lovely and colorful recipe! Simple, too. Love your vibrant and cheerful photos, Laurie. Thanks for sharing!
Use your garlic press to press sliced "coins" of the ginger root, it minces it into small pieces but leaves the woody pulp behind. Do this over the bowl for the sauce to catch all awesome ginger juice while squeezing. I learned how to do this when a recipe called for ginger juice and suggested using a garlic press to get it out.
You stir fry looks amazing!
That looks brilliant–so colorful, and love all the photos! I am now craving stir-fry for lunch.
This might be a little forward…but…will you marry me?
I definitely crave bright, fresh flavours like this!
Yum. I love easy dinners. Added bonus when they are filled with my favorite healthy foods!
We are big fans of stir fry in this house, and this looks wonderful. The sauce sounds great, and all those beautiful veggies!
Ooooh I didn't know I was craving Chinese until right this very minute. I think I'll wait till tomorrow because getting out the wok at 10:30 at night seems odd.
It's a colorful and flavorful dish. I am already planning to cook it for dinner in next few weeks
Your Szechan chicken looks perfect. It is very bold in flavour and sounds really healthy, too. I will definitely cook this for dinner some day
Mmm, sambal olek! Looks like a wonderfully, spicy dish
I could seriously eat stir fry every day of the week. I love your addition of the heat and chopped peanuts!
Wow…I was just searching for this yesterday!!! L.O.V.E. your salt grinder…share where to find?? thanks!
Anonymous~ I bought them at our major grocery store (Meijer) here in Michigan. BUT I believe you can buy them online http://www.meijer.com They are Katie Brown and are about $17 each
I made this last week and it was SUCH a hit!! Yours looks incredible
We get on wok kicks in my house. I try to remember to use it often because it packs so many more crispy vegetables into us then we normally eat (actually, we could really use some now!). I see a menu change in the near future to sneak this in.
Such a wonderful blend of flavor and heat…just delicious and so healthy ..definitely a "keeper"…thank you, Laurie
Glad I saw this post as we are going to attempt some Szechuan Shrimp tonight. Hope it comes out as well as yours looks.
I made this tonight with shrimp and it wonderful. My husband and I are trying to eat healthier and this will be a regular addition. Thanks!