Stir Fry Basil Chicken
With a little forethought, this is a quick and easy meal. My family doesnt even miss the fact that I almost never prepare a starch with this dish.
With a little forethought, this is a quick and easy meal. My family doesnt even miss the fact that I almost never prepare a starch with this dish.
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon water
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 cup fresh basil
- 2 pounds chicken tenderloins boneless, skinless
- 3 whole green onions
- 6 teaspoons olive oil divided
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes more (or less) to taste
- 6 cups bok choy washed, and cut into strips removing a lot of the white veins but not all.
- Carbohydrate 41.5583391720928 g
- Cholesterol 92.98643585 mg
- Fat 37.840703431988 g
- Fiber 5.05502059013765 g
- Protein 37.2923225071027 g
- Saturated Fat 7.68064834941409 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (425g)
- Sodium 1677.85627873297 mg
- Sugar 36.5033185819551 g
- Trans Fat 6.24652334268169 g
- Calories 652 calories
Step-by-step
- In a large zip-loc bag, combine water, soy sauce and sugar; add chicken. Seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 30 minutes
- In a wok or skillet, stir-fry the onions in 1 tsp of oil until crisp tender. Stir in the garlic and pepper flakes; cook and stir for 1 minute. Remove and keep warm.
- Drain and discard any marinade from chicken. In the same wok, stir fry the chicken in 3 tsp of oil for 4-5 minutes or until the juices run clear. Meanwhile in another skillet, saute the bok choy in remaining oil until crisp tender. Add onion mixture to the chicken. Stir in basil; heat through.
- Serve the chicken mixture over bok choy.
Heat Management and Equipment Control
High-heat cooking requires deliberate equipment selection to achieve proper browning without scorching the aromatics. A traditional round-bottom carbon steel wok placed over a high-output gas burner provides the ideal thermal gradient, but a heavy cast-iron skillet serves as a reliable flat-bottom alternative when cooking on electric ranges. Because residential burners generally lack the BTU output of commercial stoves, crowding the pan drops surface temperature immediately. Cook the chicken in batches if necessary, allowing the meat to sear for four to five minutes until internal juices run clear at 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Adding garlic and red pepper flakes too early results in bitter compounds; introduce them to warm oil for exactly sixty seconds to release essential oils safely.
Adapting Batch Sizes and Green Integration
Scaling this preparation requires careful attention to pan capacity and moisture release. Doubling the ingredients without increasing surface area traps steam, turning a dry-heat stir-fry into a boiled braise. When adjusting portions up or down, maintain the ratio of six cups of bok choy to two pounds of chicken, utilizing a separate skillet for the greens if the primary wok lacks volume. Sauté the bok choy until the leaves wilt while the fibrous white stalks retain a crisp bite, providing necessary textural contrast to the tender poultry. Discard any residual liquid from the chicken marinade before cooking to prevent excess moisture accumulation during the final integration step with fresh basil leaves.
