Chicken, broccoli and oyster sauce stir-fry
A healthy chicken stir-fry packed with veggies and served with a speedy egg-fried rice. A great alternative to a takeaway for under 600 calories per portion. Use packs of microwave rice to make it even quicker.
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 1 tsp cornflour
- 2 tsp light soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 500g/1lb 2oz chicken breasts, sliced into thin strips
For the stir-fry
- 1 head of broccoli, cut into small florets
- 2 small onions, finely sliced
- 1 tsp chopped ginger
- 1 tsp chopped garlic
- 4 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 chicken stock cube
- 1 tsp sesame oil
For the egg-fried rice
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil, for frying
- 4 free-range eggs, beaten
- 1 small onion, finely sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 thumb-sized piece fresh root ginger, finely sliced
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 carrot, grated
- 1 small courgette, grated
- 1 handful sweetcorn (tinned or frozen)
- 500g/1lb 2oz cooked and cooled basmati rice (alternatively use two packs of microwave rice)
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce, plus extra to serve
- 1 handful peas (fresh or frozen)
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 4 tbsp of cornflour mixed with a little cold water to make a paste
- 2 spring onions, finely sliced, to garnish
- salt and pepper (preferably white pepper)
Method
Mix the cornflour, soy sauce and sesame oil together and then add the chicken strips. Marinate the chicken strips in the fridge for at least 10 minutes and up to 24 hours.
For the stir-fry, cook the broccoli in 500ml/18fl oz boiling water until just tender (about 5 minutes). Reserve the broccoli cooking water.
For the fried rice, heat a little oil in a large frying pan or wok. Fry the beaten eggs to make a thin omelette. Remove from the heat and transfer to a plate just before it is fully cooked and solid (it will keep cooking after it is removed from the heat).
In the same pan, fry the onions until just soft. Add the garlic, ginger and sesame oil and fry for a minute. Stir in the grated carrot, courgette and sweetcorn and stir fry for 2–3 minutes.
Add the rice and use a wooden spoon to break up and clumps. Stir in the soy sauce.
Add the omelette and peas. Use a wooden spoon to break the egg into small pieces. Taste and add salt and pepper as desired.
To finish, stir in the oyster sauce and a little more soy sauce and sesame oil, if desired. Garnish with spring onions. Cover with a lid to keep it warm while you finish the stir-fry.
In a large frying pan or wok, heat about 1 tablespoon vegetable oil. Once hot, fry about half of the chicken for 2 minutes, just until it has changed colour (use smaller batches if your pan is on the small side). Transfer the cooked chicken to a plate. Cook the remaining chicken in the same way then tip onto the plate.
Using the same pan, heat a little more vegetable oil. Add the sliced onions and a tablespoon water. Cook for 2–3 minutes until the onions start to soften, then add ginger and garlic and fry for 2–3 minutes more.
Stir in the oyster sauce and cook for 2–3 minutes. Add about half of the reserved broccoli cooking water and crumble in half of the chicken stock cube. Bring to a simmer and then add the sesame oil. Add salt and pepper, to taste.
Stir in the cornflour paste and continue to simmer until you see the sauce thicken. Then return the chicken to the pan along with the broccoli. Quickly toss together so everything is coated in the sauce. Cook for another 2 minutes and then serve garnished with spring onions with the fried rice alongside.
Recipe Tips
Using white pepper is traditional in Chinese food and avoids black flecks in the finished dish, but it won't make any difference to the flavour if you use black.