Stir-Fry
Black Bean Chicken
- Serves 5-6
Author Notes
There is a really great Chinese restaurant in my town that serves a delicate, tasty black bean chicken dish. It has snow peas, paper thin rings of hot pepper, and it isn't too salty. I am trying to replicate that dish and will be updating this recipe is very close. —Sadassa_Ulna
What You'll Need
Ingredients
-
3-4
Halves boneless chicken breasts (1-1/2 lb.)
-
1
Medium onion
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1
Jalapeño
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3
Cloves garlic
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1/2
Red bell pepper
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6-8 ounces
Snow peas
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4 tablespoons
Peanut or canola oil, divided
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4 teaspoons
Toasted sesame oil, divided
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3 tablespoons
Chinese cooking wine
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2-3 tablespoons
Unsalted chicken stock
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2 tablespoons
Soy sauce
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3-4 tablespoons
Asian fermented black beans, rinsed
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2 teaspoons
corn starch
Directions
- Trim and de-string the snow peas. Cut on bias into 1" lengths. Cut onions from pole to pole into thin wedges. Cut red pepper into thin strips then 2" pieces. Cut jalapeno into thin rings after removing rib & seeds. Mince garlic.
- Cut chicken breasts into 1/2 - 3/4" strips, then 3" lengths.
- Mix chicken stock, wine, soy sauce and cornstarch in a small bowl; whisk to blend starch thoroughly. Have all of above ready.
- Heat a large heavy pan on medium high; when hot add 2 tbsp veg oil plus 2 tsp sesame oil, then chicken. Beware of splattering. Do not crowd pan and do the following in two batches if necessary: quickly stir-fry chicken until golden but not fully cooked; remove and set aside in bowl.
- Add a little more oil to pan if needed. Add onion first and cook for 5 minutes, then peppers, then garlic. Stir until onions are golden-brown. Add pre-cooked chicken (and juices it creates while set aside) and stir into vegetables. Reduce heat to medium-low.
- Tip pan to get a little sea of liquid; slowly whisk into this sea the little bowl of corn starch mixture. Stir vegetables to incorporate; sauce will start to thicken.
- Add rinsed black beans. Stir to incorporate, until chicken is cooked through. Add snow peas and stir right before serving. Eat over sticky rice.
Growing up I was the world's pickiest eater, that is, until my children were born. Karma. Neither of my parents were much into cooking; it was the height of eating fat-free or anything with oat bran added. I taught myself some basics, mostly baking, following the guidelines of a well-worn copy of Joy of Cooking. I was a ballet dancer and a teacher suggested I lose weight. As I began reading about diet and nutrition I became interested in natural foods, which led to a job at a macrobiotic natural foods market in Center City Philadelphia; this was way before Whole Foods came to the area. I learned a lot about food in general. I ate strictly vegan for a while, although I don't now, but I still like it when a recipe can taste great without butter or bacon! In short, my approach to cooking is idiosyncratic, and I don't know very much about cooking meat or proper technique. I love to bake and I am still working on expanding my palate and my repertoire. The hardest part is getting the whole family to try new things!
So aside from my food status, I am an architect who likes to garden and play music. I'm married with two kids, and I hope to get a dog someday.
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