Chicken Stir Fry Recipes – Spicy, Honey-garlic, and Original Flavors!

Chicken stir fry is one of the healthy recipes that everyone should try. Different types of chicken stir fry can give you healthy choices for your meal plans. Chicken is one of the healthy foods and sources of protein as long as there is no chicken fat and skin. Otherwise, it will be useless for a healthy meal plan.

Chicken stir fry is one of the primary methods of cooking chicken. A healthy option indeed, and since it is a primary method, everyone can learn how to cook this kind of food.

A solution if you always need a meal on-the-go. You can easily pack this excellent chicken stir fry and enjoy it later in the day. Thin strips of chicken should be done in this recipe. Then you can make some twist of flavors, so the chicken stir fry recipe will not get you bored.

To make this recipe perfect, you can have some veggies and create some sauce for your own flavor. I know that simple chicken stir fry is boring to eat. So experimenting with some flavor is not harmful or unhealthy as long as you keep on using healthy foods.

The first rule in a chicken stir fry is to stir together the sauce carefully and prepare all the ingredients, especially the meat and all vegetables. In this recipe, preparation needs more time than cooking. So start fast and ahead for the elements because it takes more than 30 minutes – starts to finish.

But it is worth it to try cooking the chicken stir fry. Especially if you really want to personalize the sauce, from simple to spicy to sweet, then garlic. Trying these recipes for the chicken stir fry will change the way you know with this recipe.

The Basic Chicken Stir Fry

What are the ingredients? You will need the following for your simple chicken stir fry. It is suitable for the sharing of two.

Olive oil     –    1 tablespoon

Sesame oil    –    1 tablespoon

Vinegar    –    2 tablespoons. You can try a rice wine or apple cider vinegar)

Mirin        –    2 tablespoons

Garlic        –    2 teaspoons, minced. You can have two cloves of garlic for this.)

Shallot    –    1 stem, sliced to garnish

Cornstarch    –    1 teaspoon but mixed with two teaspoons water if needed

Onion        –    1 piece, cut into wedges

Broccoli    –    2 heads, cut into florets

Bell Pepper    –    1 part, cut into wedges

Snow Peas    –    1 cup *You can use snap peas as an alternative.)

Brown sugar    –    Quarter cup

Soy sauce    –    Quarter cup

Chicken    –    500 g, cut into bite-sized pieces. (skinless and boneless)

How to cook?

Step 1: Preheat the pan.

First, stir fry onion, broccoli, capsicum/peppers, and sugar snap peas with one tablespoon of oil until it starts to turn vibrant in color. Add two tablespoons of water, reduce the heat to medium, and stir fry until cooked to your liking (tender-crisp). Remove vegetables from the pan and keep aside.

*Tip: You can steam vegetables until cooked. So you have a shorter time of stir-frying. It will cut your cooking time by 10 minutes at max.

Step 2:  Now, the time for the chicken.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper—heat sesame oil over medium heat in the same pan. Stir fry chicken, occasionally stirring until lightly browned and crisp.

Step 3: Now it’s the time for the sauce.

In a small jug or a bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, and garlic, and then add sauce to the chicken and cook while occasionally stirring until it bubbles and thickens into a beautiful shiny glaze.

*Tip: The variation of the sauce depends on your liking. If you want a thicker sauce, add the cornstarch. Otherwise, let the natural texture of the sauce.

Step 4: Finish like a Chef. Bon appetite!

Garnish with shallot slices and serve over steamed rice.

In this chicken stir fry, you can get total nutrition of 240 calories, 16 g carbohydrates, 20 g protein but with 8 g fats only. Not bad for a healthy meal, right?

Spicing up your chicken stir fry

What are the ingredients? For this type of chicken stir fry, it is a bit different from the basic. Of course, the sauce will be spicy, but not hot!

Chicken – 500 grams, Skillet

Olive oil     –    1 tablespoon; however, you can also use vegetable oil.

Broccoli    –    2 cups of florets

Bell Pepper    –    1 piece, cut into 1-inch pieces

Yellow onion –    1 piece, chopped

Ginger    –    2 teaspoons, freshly minced

Soy sauce    –    3 tablespoons

Honey    –    1 tablespoon

Cornstarch    –    2 teaspoons

Green onion    –    3 tablespoons, freshly sliced

Cashew    –    ⅓ cup toasted. You can have almonds or other nuts as alternatives.

Additional ingredients are salt and pepper. Also, Chili garlic sauce is included.

How to cook?

After preparation of the ingredients, here is how you cook a spicy chicken stir fry.

Step 1:  Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large pan over medium-high heat and then add the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes or until softened and lightly browned.

Step 2: Add the broccoli and one tablespoon of water. Cook, occasionally stirring, until broccoli is tender, approximately 3 minutes.

Step 3: Add the bell pepper and ginger and cook for 2 minutes more, or until peppers are just softened. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper to taste, then transfer to a plate. Cover to keep warm.

Step 4: Wipe out the pan with a paper towel and add the remaining two teaspoons of oil. Add the chicken and season with salt and pepper to taste—Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side or until chicken is browned and thoroughly cooked. Add the vegetables back to the pan.

How to prepare the sauce?

While waiting for the chicken and vegetables to be edible, you have the time to prepare for the sauce.

Get a small box and mix the soy sauce, honey, and chili garlic sauce all together. In another small bowl, add the cornstarch along with two teaspoons of cold water, whisk to combine.

Then add the cornstarch mixture to the soy sauce mixture and stir until thoroughly combined.

Afterward, pour the sauce into the pan with the chicken and vegetables and turn up the heat to high. Bring the sauce to a boil and cook for 30 seconds or until just thickened.

Finally, sprinkle the cashews and green onions over the top and serve, with brown rice if desired.

For the spicy chicken stir fry, you can get lots of nutrition such as 326 calories, 18 g carbohydrates, 35 g protein, 2 g fiber, 864 mg potassium, 82 mg vitamin C, 43 mg calcium among others.

This with Honey-Garlic Sauce

Not a fan of spicy chicken stir fry? Then try this recipe, which comes with honey and garlic sauce. Again, this is a simple recipe but with another twist of sauce for more exciting flavor.

What are the ingredients?

So you will not get confused, let us separate the sauce from the main ingredients.

For the sauce, you will need the following:

Chicken broth    –    quarter cup, low-sodium

Soy sauce        –    2 tablespoons

Honey        –    1 tablespoon

Garlic        –    3 gloves, minced

Sesame oil        –    1 teaspoon

Cornstarch        –    1 teaspoon

For the main course, the following will need to set aside for the cooking:

Olive oil        –    3 and a half tablespoon

Garlic        –    2 cloves, sliced thinly

Chicken        –    1 and a half pounds (skinless), cut crosswise into an inch strip.

Broccoli        –    1 piece medium crown, cut into small florets

Bell Pepper        –    1 piece Seeded and cored, cut into half-inch strips

Squash        –    8 ounces in weight, sliced in half-inch thick half-moons

Scallion        –    2 pieces, sliced thinly

Additional: Prepare salt and rice or noodles for serving later.

What now for the sauce?

For the sauce, simply whisk all the ingredients in a small bowl. Make sure that cornstarch will be dissolved. Then set aside.

For the main course, here are the things you need to do:

Step 1: Heat a flat-bottomed wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat until a drop of water vaporizes immediately on contact. Drizzle one tablespoon of the oil around the pan and then add the garlic. Then, cook, continually stirring with a metal spatula, until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Push the garlic to the side of the pan.

Step 2: For the chicken, add about 1/2 of the chicken in a single layer and season with salt. Cook undisturbed for 1 minute, letting it sear. Stir-fry the chicken until lightly browned and cooked through 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a large plate. Drizzle one tablespoon of the oil around the pan and repeat with the remaining chicken.

Step 3: Drizzle 1 tablespoon of the oil around the pan, add the broccoli, and season with salt. Stir-fry until it begins to soften and brown around the edges, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to the plate with the chicken.

Afterward, drizzle the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of oil around the pan, add the peppers and zucchini, and season with salt. Stir-fry until browned and softened, 1 to 2 minutes.

Step 4: Add the reserved chicken and broccoli and any accumulated juices back to the pan and stir to combine. Stir the sauce one more time, pour into the pan, and stir-fry until the sauce is thickened and coats the chicken and vegetables, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve over rice or noodles and top with the scallions.

Sharing My Thoughts

Chicken stir fry is one of the best healthy recipes indeed. You can have it with more variations of sauce as long as no ruining the healthy benefits of this recipe. When working out, this is the recipe that is good to eat—no returns or exchange. Best time to eat? A quick dinner and everyone would love this delicious dish!