Sunday is usually either the day when I challenge myself and cook up something elaborate and extraordinary or it is the day when I feel like doing absolutely nothing at all, and we will order in food. On these particularly lazy Sundays…Asian cuisine is what I crave the most…namely Thai or Chinese delivery. Sometimes there is sushi on Sundays too, but that’s only when we’re feeling particularly fancy.
To satisfy this craving, I am constantly working on coming up with asian inspired recipes that are healthy and just as easy as picking up the phone to order take out. Most of the time you need nothing more than a wok and and a cutting board to put them together. And because the cooking with a wok usually required fast cooking with high heat, meals like this usually come together in only a few minutes.
This particular recipe for mushroom chicken is loaded with zucchini, shiitake, and brown mushrooms in a light semi-sweet and sticky sauce. The chicken is velveted with corn starch giving it the soft and silky texture that you typically taste in Asian cooking. The umami flavor from the shiitake mushrooms adds to the delicious sauce and makes this simple meal one that you will be making over and over again.
Let’s get started.
Step 1: Make is velvet. Velveting meat is the practice of marinating slices of meat in a cornstarch mixture that results in meat that is tender, silky and smooth in texture. Combine your chopped chicken with one egg white and corn starch.
Step 2: Wok it out. Heat your vegetable oil and sesame oil in the pan. Add the chicken and cook on medium-high until browned on both sides, about 3 minutes on each side. Remove chicken from the pan, and turn the heat up to high.
Step 3: Veggin’ out. It’s time to fire up those veggies. Add in the shiitake mushrooms, brown mushrooms and zucchini and cook until they start to brown. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Step 4: Shake it all about. Add the chicken back in and stir.
Step 5: Get Saucy. Add in the soy sauce, sugar and rice wine vinegar and stir to coat. Top with sesame seeds.
Mushroom and Zucchini Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into thin bite sized slices (you can also use breasts)
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 8 ounces shiitake mushrooms sliced
- 4 ounces brown mushrooms sliced
- 1 medium zucchini, cut in half lengthwise, then in 1/2 inch slices
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- Toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Make is velvet. Velveting meat is the practice of marinating slices of meat in a cornstarch mixture that results in meat that is tender, silky and smooth in texture. Combine your chopped chicken with one egg white and corn starch.
- Heat your vegetable oil and sesame oil in the pan. Add the chicken and cook on medium-high until browned on both sides, about 3 minutes on each side. Remove chicken from the pan, and turn the heat up to high.
- It's time to fire up those veggies. Add in the shiitake mushrooms, brown mushrooms and zucchini and cook until they start to brown. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
- Shake it all about. Add the chicken back in and stir.
- Add in the soy sauce, sugar and rice wine vinegar and stir to coat. Top with sesame seeds.
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