Description
Chicken Chop Suey is a quick and delicious stir-fry featuring tender chicken breast and a vibrant mix of fresh vegetables coated in a flavorful, easy-to-make sauce. With a combination of light and dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sesame oil, this dish offers a perfect balance of savory and umami flavors. It’s ideal for a wholesome weeknight meal, served with steamed rice or noodles.
Ingredients
Scale
Chicken Marinade
- 1 piece chicken breast, about 180g/6.3oz
- ½ tablespoon tapioca starch, or cornstarch
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 drop cooking oil
Sauce
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- ½ tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon oyster sauce
- ½ teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon tapioca starch, or cornstarch
- 1 pinch salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
- 4 tablespoon water
Vegetables and Aromatics
- ½ onion, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, sliced
- 1 small carrot, thinly sliced
- 1 handful snow peas (mangetout), strings removed
- 3 baby corn, diagonally sliced
- 3 button mushrooms, sliced
- 1 handful mung bean sprouts
Cooking Oil
- 1½ tablespoon neutral cooking oil, divided (1 tbsp + ½ tbsp)
Instructions
- Marinate the chicken: Cut chicken breast crosswise into thin slices about 5mm (0.2 inch) thick and place in a bowl. Add ½ tablespoon tapioca starch or cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water. Stir well to evenly coat the chicken. Add a drop of cooking oil and mix thoroughly. Set aside to marinate.
- Prepare the sauce: In a small bowl, combine 1 tablespoon light soy sauce, ½ tablespoon dark soy sauce, 2 tablespoons oyster sauce, ½ teaspoon sesame oil, 1 tablespoon tapioca starch or cornstarch, a pinch of salt, ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper, and 4 tablespoons water. Mix well and set aside.
- Cook the chicken: Heat a wok over high heat until it starts to smoke. Add 1 tablespoon of neutral cooking oil. Add the marinated chicken slices and stir-fry quickly until the chicken loses its pinkness; do not overcook. Remove and set aside.
- Stir-fry the vegetables and aromatics: Into the wok, add the remaining ½ tablespoon oil. Stir-fry sliced onion and garlic over high heat until fragrant. Add thinly sliced carrot and stir for about 15 seconds. Then add snow peas and baby corn and stir-fry for another 20 seconds.
- Combine chicken and mushrooms: Return cooked chicken to the wok along with sliced mushrooms and mung bean sprouts. Stir-fry everything together for approximately 30 seconds.
- Add the sauce: Stir the prepared sauce to ensure starch is well incorporated, then pour it over the ingredients in the wok. Mix thoroughly and cook just until the sauce thickens and coats the chicken and vegetables evenly.
- Serve immediately: Transfer to a serving dish and enjoy hot, ideally with plain steamed rice or as a topping for noodles.
Notes
- Oyster sauce adds depth and umami to the dish. If unavailable, you can substitute with mushroom sauce or a combination of soy sauce and a pinch of sugar.
- Tapioca starch or cornstarch is used twice: once to tenderize the chicken during marinating and once in the sauce to thicken it.
- Heating the wok until smoking hot ensures quick stir-frying which seals in the chicken’s juices for juicy, tender meat.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Chinese
Keywords: Chicken Chop Suey, stir-fry chicken recipe, Chinese stir-fry, easy chicken recipes, quick dinner ideas, healthy chicken dinner
