Hoisin Chicken and Vegetable Bowls
Hoisin Chicken and Vegetable Bowls are one of our favorite Chinese-inspired dishes. I start this dish by briefly deep-frying boneless chicken breasts. Then, I stir fry the chicken with hoisin sauce, peanuts, mirin, soy sauce, sugar, and rice vinegar. Finally, I serve the chicken over rice with steamed edamame, stir fried carrots, and pickled cucumbers and radishes. We like this chicken dish for several reasons. First of all, I like that this is a complete meal. I don’t need to make any side dishes. Secondly, I like that I can make this meal ahead of time. Then, I can reheat all the warm items in the microwave. And, lastly, we all love the tasty Chinese-inspired flavors in this dish.
The Equipment I Used
- A Dutch Oven- I like to deep fry my chicken in an enameled cast iron Dutch oven. But you can use any large pot.
- A Deep Fry Thermometer- Use this to monitor the temperature of your frying oil.
The Ingredients Needed for Hoisin Chicken and Vegetable Bowls
- Cornstarch- You’ll need this to thicken the sauce.
- Chicken- Use boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I always use Bell and Evans chicken, because I find it to be the most tender.
- Mirin- You can find this in the Asian section of your market.
- Rice Vinegar- You can find this in the Asian section or the vinegar section of your market.
- Hoisin Sauce- You can find this is in the Asian section of your market.
- Oil- Fry the chicken in vegetable, canola, or peanut oil. Do not use olive oil.
How I Made my Chicken and Vegetable Bowls
- First, I marinated the chicken in egg white and cornstarch. This tenderizes the chicken.
- Next, I deep fried the chicken and drained it.
- Then, I stir fried the chicken with a hoisin stir fry sauce.
- Finally, I served the chicken over rice with stir fried carrots, pickled cucumbers and radishes, and edamame.
If you like Chinese-inspired flavors, you need to try these delicious Hoisin Chicken and Vegetable Bowls.
Hoisin Chicken and Vegetable Bowls
Equipment
- deep frying thermometer
Ingredients
For the Rice:
- 1 cup long grain white rice
- 1½ cups water
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
For Deep-Frying the Chicken:
- 1 egg white (beaten until foamy)
- 1 tsp. each cornstarch and kosher salt
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced in half inch strips
- 3 cups vegetable oil
For the Stir Fry:
- 2 tbsp. vegetable oil (reserved from the deep-frying )
- 2 tbsp. each sugar and rice vinegar, hoisin, and soy sauce
- ¼ cup mirin
- ¼ sliced scallions
- 1 tbsp. sliced garlic
- ½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tbsp. sliced ginger
- 1 tbsp. minced garlic
- 2 tsp. cornstarch mixed with 4 tsp. water
- ½ cup shelled unsalted peanuts
For the Carrots:
- 1 tsp. olive oil
- 2 cups thinly sliced carrots
- 1 tsp. each soy sauce and sugar
For the Radishes and Cucumbers:
- 1 cup thinly sliced radishes
- 1 cup cucumbers, sliced
- ¼ tsp. kosher salt
- 1 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
- 1 tsp. sugar
For the Garnishes:
- ¼ cup sliced scallions
- 2 cups shelled and cooked edamame
Instructions
- First, make the rice: In a three-quart saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Add the rice and salt and cover and simmer it for 16 minutes. Remove it from the stove and let it sit covered for 10 minutes or until the chicken is done.
- Begin by starting the chicken: Beat together the egg white, cornstarch, and salt. Stir in the chicken, cover and refrigerate.
- Also, prepare the cucumbers and radishes: Sprinkle each with a quarter teaspoon of kosher salt and let sit ten minutes. Squeeze each dry. Stir in one tablespoon of rice wine vinegar and one teaspoon of sugar to each vegetable.
- Also, cook the carrots: In a skillet, heat the oil and cook the carrots with the soy sauce and sugar, on medium heat, for a few minutes, just until they're crisp tender. Cover to keep them warm.
- Also, continue the Hoisin Chicken: Heat a Dutch Oven or large pot with an inch and a half of the vegetable oil. Heat the oil to 325 degrees. Mix together the stir fry sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set it aside: mirin, soy sauce, sugar, rice vinegar and hoisin. In four batches, fry the chicken just until it turns white. Drain each batch in a colander set over a bowl. In a large skillet, on medium heat, heat two tablespoons of oil from frying the chicken. Add the ginger, scallion, garlic, and red pepper flakes and stir until everything is combined. Add all the chicken to the pan, along with the stir fry sauce. Bring this mixture to a boil. Stir in the cornstarch mixed with water and stir for thirty seconds. Stir in the peanuts.
- To serve: Put some rice in four bowls. Top the rice with some chicken and sauce. Also, add the cucumbers, carrots, edamame and radishes. Sprinkle the bowls with the scallions.