A Recipe for Me

This light meal for two is from the Better Homes and Gardens “Cooking for 2” magazine. I made it this evening and it was easy and delicious. Of course I had to add my own spin to it, so what you see here is my version.

What you’ll need:

• 2 oz. rice sticks or dried vermicelli, broken
• 3 T sherry
• 3 T soy sauce
• 1 T cornstarch
• 8 oz. skinless, boneless chick breast halvess (sub thighs if you prefer dark meat)
• 1 medium carrot, cut into thin bite-size strips or thinly sliced
• 1 C broccoli florets
• 1 small red or green sweet (bell) pepper, cut into 1-inch strips
• 2 T cashew halves or peanuts

Sauce:

• 1/2 C chicken broth
• 1 T snipped fresh basil, or 1 t dried basil, crushed
• 1 T soy sauce
• 1 t cornstarch
• 1/2 t chili oil or 1/4 t crushed red pepper
• 1/4 t ground tumeric
• Vegetable or peanut oil (peanut oil is my preference)

What to do:

1. In a small mixing bowl, combine sherry, soy sauce, and cornstarch. Cut chicken into thin slices and combine with sherry mixture. Set aside. The longer this sits, the more tender the chicken will become (don’t let it sit more than about 30 minutes, though).
2. In a medium saucepan, cook rice sticks or vermicelli according to package directions. Drain, cover and keep warm. Note: I used rice sticks and actually started this process when I was ready to start stir frying as both take just about the same amount of time.
3. Pour 1T oil into a wok or large saute pan; heat over medium-high heat, adding oil as needed during cooking. Add carrots; cook and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add broccoli; cook and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Add sweet pepper; cook and stir for 1 1/2 – 2 minutes more or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Remove vegetables from wok.
4. Add 1-3T oil to wok. Heat till smoking, then carefully add chicken. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Push chicken to side of work.
5. Stir sauce; add to center of wok. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.
6. Return vegetables to wok; add fresh basil, if using. Stir all ingredients together to coat with sauce. Stir-fry for about 2 minutes longer or until heated through. Serve chicken mixture over rice sticks or vermicelli. Sprinkle with cashews.