Chinese Chicken & Broccoli

Andrew loves chinese food. Sweet and sour chicken, barbecue spare ribs, pork fried rice, and egg rolls are some of his favorites. I personally can't live without crispy cheese wontons and crab rangoon (look for these soon - they are on my 2013 cooking bucket list). Anyway, he's been craving chinese food almost daily these past few weeks and our favorite take-out place is a little on the pricey side. A quick freezer raid turned up some chicken and broccoli and suddenly dinner was born. I believe his exact words were "This is the best chinese food I have ever had." While we were stuffing our faces, we decided that the only thing that could make this dish even better would be to throw some cashews in it next time. Try it both ways and let me know which one you prefer.


Chinese Chicken & Broccoli
Makes 4 servings

What I use:

• 1 lb. chicken cutlets (very thin chicken breasts)
• 1 lb. cooked broccoli (steamed, boiled, microwaved, any way you want)
• 1/4 c. low-sodium soy sauce
• 3/4 c. chicken broth
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 2 tsp. grated ginger (I use a micro-plane, you can just mince it very fine if you don't have one)
• 2 Tbsp. corn starch
• 2 Tbsp. cooking oil
• 3 c. cooked rice (white, brown, jasmine, any kind you like)

How I do it:

1. Slice the chicken into 1/4 inch strips. (This is easier if you put the chicken in the freezer for about 15 minutes first.) Place the strips into a bowl.

2. In a glass measuring cup, add the soy sauce, chicken broth, brown sugar, grated ginger, and corn starch. Whisk to combine.

3. Pour about 1/3 of the sauce over the chicken. Push the chicken down to make sure it is all coated. Let it marinate for 10 to 15 minutes. (This would be a good time to make the rice or broccoli.)

4. Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat.

5. Add the chicken and cook until done, just a few minutes. Toss around in the pan so it doesn't burn, but let it get some nice color on it.

6. Turn the heat down to medium, add the cooked broccoli, and pour on the rest of the sauce from the measuring cup. Stir around and cook for a minute or two, until the sauce just starts to thicken.

7. Serve over rice.

This is another awesome recipe where you can let your creativity lead you. Go for beef or shrimp instead of the chicken, swap out the broccoli for a bag of mixed stir-fry veggies, or play with different rices. There are so many ways you can make this - have fun with it!