Receta Ginger Chicken Stir Fry with Asparagus, Peas, and Mushrooms
Spring
has been notable here for tempting us to believe it’s actually arrived. This is
followed by plummeting temperatures the next day convincing us all it has
not. In New York City, you can count on
the oddest collection of outfits this time of year. The winter weary—mainly males—can be counted
on to don their shorts and tee shirts the minute it gets close to 60
degrees. They are accompanied by vast
numbers of people who resist any wardrobe change until it’s at least 75. At least that’s the impression I get standing
on line in Trader Joes’ between a guy who looks ready for a run in the park and
a woman who is wearing a wool hat, coat, scarf and gloves. Ah well.
A surer sign that Spring must be on
its way is the arrival, at last, of Asparagus labeled “Jersey Fresh” and nice
sacks of English Peas of indeterminate origin but nevertheless green as all get
out. Asparagus has become a year ‘round
vegetable due mainly to the fact that it gets trucked in from Mexico and flown
in from Peru. In 1980, the US imported
just 8 percent of its asparagus. By the
end of the 1990s, imports had increased to 74 percent! But there is simply no comparison between
Asparagus grown practically next door to stuff that has had to endure a three
or six thousand mile journey to get here.
Instead of those pencil-sized
stems, local asparagus is big and fat and full of flavor. Now you can spend all kinds of time peeling
the stems of your asparagus up to about 2 inches from the base. Or you can snap the stem and, somewhat
miraculously, it will break off exactly where the woody and harder to eat part
separates itself from the tender part of the shoot. But if even that seems wildly time-consuming,
you throw away the bottom two inches. That’s what you do here in this easy
weeknight dinner dish.
I can almost promise that this will
not be the last asparagus recipe on the blog this spring. Asparagus, like ramps, has a huge following
this time of year. The recipes come fast
and furious for everything from frittatas
to revueltos (coming soon!). And here’s one that’s a complete keeper. It’s
a stir-fry of tender chicken, bright green asparagus to which I added fresh
English peas and earthy Cremini mushrooms.
You can absolutely use Shiitakes if you’d like and you can also go with
frozen peas. If you are a regular
visitor to Chewing the Fat, you are familiar with my love for Stir-fries. They are just so quick and easy and the only
rule governing them is that you should have everything ready to go before you
start cooking a single thing. And before
you cook the stir-fry, start the rice so you’ll have a complete dinner on the
table in less than 30 minutes. Here is
the recipe:
Recipe for Ginger Chicken Stir Fry with Asparagus, Peas and Cremini
Mushrooms.
Serves 6. Takes under 30 minutes.
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs,
- cut into chunks of about 1 inch.
- 1-1 inch piece of ginger peeled and diced
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- ½ tsp. red pepper flakes,
- 1 lb. asparagus, trimmed and cut
- into 1-inch pieces
- 1 cup fresh or frozen green peas
- 1 small
- onion, cut into thin wedges,
- 10
- ounces medium mushrooms, sliced.
- 1. In a medium-sized bowl, coat chicken with 1/4 cup of the flour. Set
aside.
2. In the same bowl, mix stock, honey, soy sauce in remaining flour, then
add ginger, garlic powder and red pepper. Stir till smooth. Set aside.
3. Heat 1 tbsp. of Olive oil in wok or large skillet on medium-high heat.
Add chicken; stir fry 5 minutes or until browned, depending on size of chicken.
Remove from wok or skillet.
4. Heat remaining 1 tbsp oil in wok. Add vegetables and mushrooms; stir-fry
5 minutes or until tender-crisp.
5. Stir stock mixture. Add to wok; stirring constantly, bring to boil on
medium heat and boil 2 minutes or until thickened. Add chicken; stir-fry until
heated through. Serve over rice.