Life is good again. My ability to cook has been re-validated (as has my love of spicy food).
It is crazy cold here. We’re lucky if the temperature crests above zero. And don’t get me started on the wind chill, which has been -20ish.
On top of the arctic temperatures, I’m also starting to get ill. I woke up yesterday morning with a sore throat, which has persisted and I’m sure will eventually become a cough. This is what I get for spending my New Year’s Eve with my boyfriend, who is still fighting off the exact same thing. It’s not a huge deal, just annoying.
Anyway, it’s cold, I’m sick, and I want something hot. On the same page of my new cookbook (Taste of Home Down Home Cooking for One or Two) as the spicy chicken roll up is a recipe for Sesame Chicken Stir Fry. The original recipe calls for mushrooms, peas, and red peppers as well as broccoli and onions, but I’m not so much a fan of those so I left them out. The original sauce is pretty basic as well. I jazzed mine up considerably, and it seems like an easy base to augment. Here is what I did:
1 boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into chunks
1 ½ caps of veggie oil
1 cup broccoli florets
¾ cup chopped onion
3-4 cloves of chopped garlic
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. sugar
½ cup cold water
3-4 Tbsp. soy sauce
About 2 tsp. Siracha
About 1 Tbsp. honey
½ tsp. powdered ginger
1 tsp. garlic powder
Crushed red pepper, sesame seeds, and chopped green onion for garnish
The original recipe asks you to do all of the stir-frying first before mixing up the sauce. I don’t know about you, but when I stir-fry I prefer not to get too distracted by anything in case whatever I’m stir-frying starts to burn. Therefore, I went ahead and mixed up the sauce first.
Combine cornstarch and sugar; stir in water and soy sauce until smooth. This is where you can start flavoring it to your liking. I wanted something spicy, so I added the Siracha. The honey, ginger, and garlic powder also went into the sauce as a result of me tasting and adding until I liked it. Once you’re happy with your sauce, set it aside.
Stir-fry the chicken for 6-8 minutes or until cooked thoroughly. Remove the chicken, and stir-fry the broccoli for a few minutes. Add in the onions and garlic. Stir-fry for a few minutes. Add the sauce to the skillet/wok/whatever you’re using. Bring to a boil and let cook for a few, stirring occasionally, until it starts to thicken up. Add the chicken back in and toss it all together. Let it cook for a few more until the veggies are tender, the whole thing is heated through, and the sauce is to your liking in terms of thickness.
Serve the whole thing on rice. Sprinkle with crushed red pepper (if you want), sesame seeds, and some chopped green onions. Eat. Be happy.
Folks, this was so good. All of my favorite stir-fry components plus a tasty Asian-style sauce. It was pretty spicy. I probably should have used less Siracha. But whatever. I was really happy with the whole dish.
I would probably add more broccoli the next time I made this. One cup of broccoli florets doesn’t really amount to much. I love broccoli, and would probably use more like 1 ½ -2 cups.
Not a terrible dish for warming up in this cold, cold weather.
