Healthy Chicken Stir Fry

• 1.25 lbs boneless chicken breast or thighs cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 large white onion thinly sliced
• 2 large bell peppers thinly sliced
• 1 lb broccoli chopped
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1 inch ginger peeled and minced
• 1 3/4 cup chicken stock low sodium
• 1/4 cup soy sauce I used Bragg's liquid aminos
• 2 tbsp honey, maple syrup or brown sugar
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 3 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds for garnish
• 2 tbsp Avocado oil for frying

1. Cut the vegetables and chicken. “Stir fry” means to cook small pieces of food quickly on high heat while stirring. I highly recommend the vegetables and meat are prepped before you light the stove.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together chicken stock, soy sauce, maple syrup, vinegar, cornstarch, garlic and ginger. Set aside.
3. Preheat a large ceramic non-stick skillet on medium heat and add 1 tbsp of oil.
4. * To cook boneless chicken breasts or thighs: Cook uncovered for 3 minutes per side, stirring a few times.
5. * To cook bone-in chicken: Add chicken and 2 tbsp of water to a wok, sprinkle with a bit of salt, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Turn, cover and cook for another 10 minutes.
6. Remove chicken on a plate and return the skillet to high heat. Add 1 more tbsp of oil, onion and bell peppers. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring once or twice. Remove onto a plate.
7. Return skillet to medium heat, add broccoli, whisk stir fry sauce well (cornstarch settles fast at the bottom) and add to the skillet. Stir, let sauce come to a boil, then cook for a few minutes until thickened, stirring often.
8. Return cooked chicken, onion and bell peppers to the skillet. Stir gently, turn off heat and garnish stir fry with sesame seeds.
9. Serve hot over quinoa, brown rice, brown rice vermicelli or whole wheat spaghetti.

• Meat with bone in: You can replace chicken breasts with 2 lbs chicken drumsticks/thighs. Cook times indicated in the recipe.
• Best veggies to stir fry: Plan around seasonal veggies or just wing it with whatever you have on hand. Crisp carrots, bright red peppers, broccoli, onions, asparagus, cauliflower and snow peas make a colourful combo. If you're more adventuresome, try eggplant slices, a variety of mushrooms, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, or a handful of bean sprouts.
• Best oil for stir fry: When you cook on high heat the best oil to use is the oil with a high smoke point. The most healthy one is avocado oil with a smoke point of 520 degrees F.
• Frozen veggies: You can use frozen veggie mix or even labeled "stir fry blend" vegetables. Just cook until veggies are warmed through and to your preferred doneness. - Keep in mind frozen veggies are already somewhat "cooked" by the freezing process.
• Cookware: To get a good sear on chicken and veggies, I recommend using a large deep ceramic non-stick skillet. I find wok does not sear food well on residential stove but rather steams it with its high walls. But use what you are used to.
• Dried ginger: If you don’t have any fresh, use 1 tsp of dried instead. This is another ingredient you can omit if you haven’t got any and aren’t prepared to make an extra trip to the store.
• Dark colour sauce: If you would like dark stir fry sauce like mine in photos, use brown sugar. I use organic one and alternate with maple syrup or honey other times.

Original Recipe