Stir-Fried Chicken and Bok Choy

Name: Stir-Fried Chicken and Bok Choy
Total time: 30 min
Yield: Serves 2 to 3
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons soy sauce; 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar; 1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil; 2 teaspoons light brown sugar; 3/4 pound boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1/2-inch strips; 2 tablespoons finely chopped gingerroot; 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped; 3 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil; 1/2 pound bok choy (1 head), trimmed and thinly sliced; 2 leeks (1/2 pound), halved lengthwise and thinly sliced; Pinch chile flakes; Salt, as needed; Cooked rice, for serving

By Melissa Clark

Total Time: 30 minutes
Rating: 5(2,199)
Comments: Read comments

No need for a wok here. You can use a flat-bottomed skillet or sauté pan instead, the bigger the better. You want as much surface area as possible to get as hot as possible, so preheat the pan for at least five minutes before adding the oil. There should be a forbidding amount of smoke when the ingredients hit the pan (open the windows and turn on the fan before you start). That will give you the deepest sear. Stir-fries are infinitely variable, and you can change up this recipe by using beef or pork, and other green vegetables (asparagus, broccoli, mustard greens, cabbage, spinach or thinly sliced green beans) substitute nicely for the bok choy. Make a version of this dish once or twice and you’ll have a reliable and delicious alternative to takeout.

Featured in: The Ease of Stir-Fry

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Ingredients

Yield:Serves 2 to 3

2tablespoons soy sauce
2tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1½tablespoons sesame oil
2teaspoons light brown sugar
¾pound boneless chicken thighs, cut into ½-inch strips
2tablespoons finely chopped gingerroot
2cloves garlic, finely chopped
3tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil
½pound bok choy (1 head), trimmed and thinly sliced
2leeks (½ pound), halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
Pinch chile flakes
Salt, as needed
Cooked rice, for serving

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

Step 1
In a medium bowl, whisk together soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, and sugar. Pour half the mixture over the chicken, along with half the ginger and half the garlic. Let stand 20 minutes.
Step 2
Heat a large, 12-inch skillet over high heat until extremely hot, about 5 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon peanut oil and the chicken. Cook, stirring constantly, until meat is cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
Step 3
Add the remaining peanut oil to the skillet. Add the bok choy and cook 1 minute. Stir in the leeks and chili flakes; cook, tossing frequently until bok choy and leeks are tender, about 1 minute. Stir in the marinade and a pinch of salt. Move vegetable mixture to the border of the pan. Add remaining ginger and garlic to center of pan and cook, mashing lightly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Return chicken to skillet and combine with ginger, garlic, and vegetables. Serve immediately, over rice.

Ratings

5 out of 5

2,199 user ratings

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Comments

Marco Ajello7 years ago

Please be very careful with sautéeing as described thus: “...preheat the pan for at least five minutes before adding the oil. There should be a forbidding amount of smoke when the ingredients hit the pan.” When the marinated chicken hit the super-hot preheated pan, the water in the marinade immediately evaporated and atomized the oil, which in turn caught fire and created a 3 feet high fireball for about 8-10 seconds. Nothing happened but still scary.

Third.Coast7 years ago

I usually use baby bok choy. Cut the very bottom off, separate the stems. Rinse. Then more or less cut them in half, separating the whiter bottoms from the greener leaves. You can then chop the white part or slice them and stack the leaves and give them a whack or two with your knife. Put the white parts in the pan first as they are thicker and will take a bit longer to cook.

Lí7 years ago

I cooked it with the marinade the 1st time and ended up with a blackened mess in the bottom of the pan from the sugar. The 2nd time, I didn't bother marinating the chicken at all; I just added all the sauce at once, post-veggies. It turned out great this way & honestly, I preferred doing that to the alternative, which would've been marinating the chicken for 20 min, then patting dry to avoid a burned-sugar mess. Marinating didn't make that much difference in flavor, imo.

Delicious Design6 years ago

I used the meat from previously roasted chicken thighs and started with the bok choy step. I added 3 shittakes and subbed a fresh red chile pepper for the flakes. One extra splash of shoyu at the end. Served without rice to make it Keto. Fast and delicious!

Andrew6 years ago

My leeks were a bit mushy! I should've taken them out a few seconds earlier. With a bit more crunch this would've been a great meal. Live and learn :-)

Stiven Cabrera6 years ago

Used yellow onions because I didn't have leeks. The flavors worked great with each other. Love the kick from the chili flakes, great balance of sweetness and acidity. WATCH OUT when you put in the chicken into your extremely hot pan if you're on a gas stove. As you know, the water in the marinade will instantly evaporate which causes some of the oil to go up and into the flames, causing a fire. No big deal if it happens, just pull the pan away from the flame and let the marinade evaporate.

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