Stir-Fried Chicken With Mushrooms and Snow Peas
Updated June 17, 2024
David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
- Total Time
- 30 minutes, plus at least 30 minutes’ chilling
- Prep Time
- 15 minutes
- Cook Time
- 15 minutes, plus at least 30 minutes’ chilling
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut crosswise (against the grain) into ⅛-inch-thick slices, 1½ to 2 inches long
1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 large egg white
1 tablespoon cornstarch, plus another 2 teaspoons, if you like
5 tablespoons neutral oil (peanut, safflower, grapeseed)
2 ounces snow peas, trimmed and cut in half crosswise (about ¾ cup sliced)
8 ounces mushrooms (any kind you like), sliced
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon soy sauce, more to taste
2 teaspoons sesame oil
Nutritional analysis per serving (3 to 4 servings)
5 grams carbs; 83 milligrams cholesterol; 347 calories; 13 grams monosaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 23 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 517 milligrams sodium; 29 grams protein; 2 grams sugar
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
Put the chicken slices into a bowl, and stir in Shaoxing wine and ½ teaspoon salt. In another bowl, beat the egg white until the gel is broken and it thins out slightly (it should not be frothy) and add to the chicken mixture. Sprinkle in 1 tablespoon cornstarch and mix well. Add 1 tablespoon neutral oil and stir until smooth.
- Step 2
Refrigerate chicken for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours so the coating has time to adhere to the meat.
- Step 3
Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil, then add 1 tablespoon neutral oil. Add the snow peas to a sieve or strainer that fits in the pot. Lower into boiling water for 10 seconds. Pull out the sieve (leaving water in the pot) and rinse snow peas with cold water. (Alternatively, you can put the snow peas directly in the water, stir once with a slotted spoon, then scoop them up and drain in a colander, rinsing well with cold water to stop the cooking.)
- Step 4
Lower heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Add in the chicken, stir to separate, and keep stirring gently until the coating turns white, about 1 minute. Drain chicken. (If you’d like a thicker, glossier sauce, whisk 2 teaspoons cornstarch with 1½ tablespoons warm water until the cornstarch has dissolved. Reserve.)
- Step 5
Heat a wok or large, heavy skillet over high heat. Once hot, add remaining 3 tablespoons neutral oil, swirl and heat for 30 seconds. Add mushrooms and ginger to hot oil, and stir and flip rapidly for about 30 seconds, or until the color of the mushrooms begins to brighten. Add the snow peas and remaining ½ teaspoon salt, and briskly stir mixture for 1 minute.
- Step 6
Add the chicken, soy sauce and reserved cornstarch slurry if using, and stir until the mixture is coated. Add the sesame oil, flip the mixture a few times and cook until the chicken is just cooked through, about 1 to 2 minutes. Serve immediately.
Private Notes
Comments
I would add teaspoon of minced garlic as well to the stir fry after the mushrooms are done so that the garlic doesn't burn. The "velveting" of the chicken is classic. To give the chicken more flavor and kicking up a notch, chicken should be marinated with soy sauce, dry sherry/shaoshing wine, 1/2 teaspoon of white pepper, and 1-2 teaspoons oyster sauce.
The sesame oil, added for flavoring at the end of the recipe for flavoring, is toasted sesame oil. In most cases, Chinese recipes that call for sesame oil are referring to toasted sesame oil. Quoting from Irene Kuo's Appendix "Chinese Ingredients," "Thick, light brown in color, and wonderfully aromatic, this oil is made from roasted sesame seeds. ... Do not buy the light yellow cold-pressed American sesame oil; it is not the same thing at all."
“The Key to Chinese Cooking” is a terrific cookbook, unfortunately long out of print. In addition to numerous authentic recipes, Kuo provided a wealth of information on techniques (e.g. it's easier to slice partially frozen chicken) and ingredients (e.g. it's toasted sesame oil). The recipes are all delicious, but I sometimes find the seasoning a little subtle. This recipe lists variations with snow peas, bamboo shoots, or thinly-sliced broccoli stems accompanying the chicken and mushrooms.
Nice dish but not as flavorful as I hoped given I used 1tbsp ginger and 2 tsp garlic, added oyster sauce to chicken marinade and subbed chile oil for some of the neutral oil in stir fry phase. No chance this comes together in 30 mins. It would go faster with familiarity but the prep involved with chicken, peas and mushrooms, plus simmer + stir-fry means this is an hour active time at least. (Might try again using Andy's idea to skip boil and go right to wok.)
Followed the tips here and for final sautee went mushrooms and ginger, then chicken til cooked through, then garlic and snow peas so the garlic didn't burn. That order worked perfectly. Also used the additional slurry. Didn't have the dry sherry so didn't use in coating, and totally forgot to drizzle with toasted sesame oil because I was already eating it out of the pan. Better than delivery and just as fast. Excellent recipe.
Made it as prescribed. Used plant based chicken (wanted to try it in a stir fry situation), so a bit of flavor was lost. Otherwise we loved it. Will make it again with real chicken.