Velvet chicken stir fry is a healthy, balanced, and easy weeknight meal. The chicken breast pieces are tenderized using baking soda to prevent overcooking. The stir-fried chicken is combined with broccoli and water chestnuts, then coated in a Chinese brown sauce. Serve it with jasmine rice for a complete meal. This recipe is inspired by my childhood favorite Chinese restaurant and is perfect for home cooks. The velveting technique involves cooking the chicken in hot oil over high heat to make it tender and juicy.

Delicious Velveted Chicken and Vegetables Stir Fry: Perfect for a Low-Fiber Diet

To make the brown sauce, you will need oyster sauce, soy sauce, garlic, chicken broth, corn starch, mirin, and toasted sesame oil. This Chinese cooking technique called water velveting ensures the boneless chicken breast remains not dry. This method works well with fish filet too, producing excellent results. This dish is also suitable for a cancer patient on a low-fiber, low-residue diet. Use ingredients like carrots, asparagus tips, mushrooms, and zucchini (without skins or seeds) that are well cooked. Lean proteins such as chicken breast are recommended for such diets.

WHAT IS VELVET CHICKEN?

Velvet chicken is a process to tenderize the meat, known as velveting. This Chinese cooking technique is common in stir fries, especially in American Chinese restaurants. It results in tender chicken and prevents it from becoming dry or rubbery. There are different methods for velveting chicken, with the most common method being the cornstarch method or oil velveting, which uses a velveting marinade of corn starch, oil, and sometimes egg whites.

I prefer the baking soda method because it is more consistent. Just dust the chicken with baking soda and let it sit for 15 minutes. Then, rinse it off using a mesh strainer, pat it dry with paper towels, and it’s ready to be seasoned and used in your stir-fry. You can start this prep before you prepare the rest of the ingredients, and it shouldn’t add much time to the preparation.

HOW TO MAKE VELVET CHICKEN WITH BAKING SODA

Step 1: Slice the chicken into thin pieces at a 45-degree angle to get wider pieces and make them uniform in thickness.
Step 2: Dust the pieces with baking soda and let them sit for 15 minutes. Use a small mesh strainer to dust the baking soda, similar to how you would dust powdered sugar.

Step 3: After 15 minutes, rinse off the baking soda using a large mesh strainer and pat the chicken dry with paper towels.
Step 4: Once the chicken is seasoned, it is ready to be used in your favorite stir-fry recipes.

INGREDIENTS

Step 1: For this velveted chicken and vegetables stir fry, you will need 12-16 oz chicken breast and 3 cups broccoli florets

(broccoli florets Pre-washed and trimmed for convenience and freshness.)
(about 12 oz). You can also add 1 8 oz can of water chestnuts
” water chestnuts Adds a delightful crunch to your stir fry.”

, drained and rinsed (optional). Slice 3 green onions with the greens sliced thin. To tenderize the chicken, use 2 teaspoons baking soda
” baking soda A game-changer for tenderizing meat effortlessly.”
Step 2: For cooking, use 1 tablespoon veggie oil, such as avocado oil. Season with salt and fresh cracked black pepper.

Step 3: For the sauce, combine ½ cup chicken broth (or sub water), 2 tablespoons mirin (Japanese sweet cooking wine), 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
” oyster sauce Gives a rich, umami punch to your stir fry sauce.”
, 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, and 1 tablespoon freshly minced garlic. Mix everything together to create a delicious and balanced dish.

INSTRUCTIONS

Step 1: Slice the chicken breast into ¼” thick slices. Arrange the sliced chicken on a cutting board or plate so it’s laying flat. Dust with 1 teaspoon baking soda, then flip all the pieces and dust with the other 1 teaspoon baking soda. Let it sit for 15 minutes.
Step 2: After 15 minutes, rinse the baking soda off the chicken with water and thoroughly pat dry. This tenderizes the chicken and gives it a unique texture. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
Step 3: While waiting, mix together the chicken stock and cornstarch in a small bowl, then add the other sauce ingredients and mix well. The oyster sauce may not fully incorporate, but that’s okay.

Step 4: Once the chicken is prepared, heat the oil in a large skillet
“A high-quality skillet ensures even cooking and perfect sear.”
over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until golden on one side (2-3 minutes), then mix the chicken and cook until cooked through (90 seconds).

Step 5: Reduce the heat to medium, push the chicken to the sides of the pan, and add the broccoli to the center. Cook for about one minute, then add the water chestnuts and cook for another minute. Add more oil if needed.
Step 6: Lower the heat slightly and add the sauce. Cook until the sauce is reduced and evenly coated. Remove from heat and add in the chopped green onion. Serve immediately over a bed of white rice.

Notes

You can skip the baking soda step if desired, but this step tenderizes the chicken and makes it nearly impossible to overcook.

STIR-FRYING FOR LOW FIBER/LOW RESIDUE DIET

When making a stir-fry dish for someone on a low fiber, low residue diet, ensure the vegetables are peeled, seeded, and well cooked. Use carrots, asparagus tips, mushrooms, and zucchini, which are permitted on this diet. Peel and remove seeds from the zucchini. Cook the vegetables in chicken broth until tender, then strain and reserve them.

When ready to stir-fry, cook finely grated ginger (no skin) in oil, then add the vegetables, velveted chicken, and a little broth. Add the stir-fry sauce and heat until all the ingredients are heated through. You can substitute your favorite vegetables if not on this diet and skip the pre-cook step, cooking the vegetables directly in the wok.

KEY TIPS – VELVET CHICKEN

DON’T SKIP THE TENDERIZING PROCESS

For velvet chicken, it’s simple: lightly dust the chicken with baking soda, let it sit, then rinse it off. This step can be omitted, but it helps keep the chicken tender and prevents the meat from being overcooked, so I highly recommend it.

BUY PRE-CUT BROCCOLI FLORETS FOR EASY PREP

To save time, buy pre-washed and trimmed broccoli florets instead of a whole head of broccoli. This makes prep much easier. However, I don’t recommend using frozen broccoli florets for this dish.

THE SAUCE CAN BE MIXED AHEAD OF TIME

To prep portions of the meal in advance, try mixing the sauce ahead of time. This can speed up the process when you go to make the dish. The chicken can also go through its baking soda process and then be returned to the fridge to be cooked later in the day.

A Note on Serving Sizes

When making velveted chicken and vegetables stir fry, thinking about serving sizes is key. This dish is great for its flexibility, easily fitting into different meal plans. Even though it’s marked as 4 servings, you might prefer more than one serving. From my experience, this recipe works well for 2-3 large dinner servings or 4 small lunch servings, making it perfect for any meal time. Plus, it pairs well with FREEZER FRIENDLY KOREAN BEEF, giving you even more variety in your meals.

FAQS

What is Velveting in Stir-Fry?

Velveting is a Chinese cooking method where cornstarch is the key ingredient. It acts as the foundation for the process, which involves marinating protein like chicken in cornstarch and then briefly passing it through hot oil. This technique helps create tender and succulent meat, making your stir-fry dishes truly special.

Can You Velvet Chicken for Frying?

Yes, you can velvet chicken for frying. The velveting marinade and high-temperature stir-frying create Chinese chicken that is both succulent and silky smooth. It’s essential to marinate stir fry meats to infuse flavor, add moisture, and tenderize them. This process ensures your meat is perfectly prepared for stir-frying, resulting in a delicious and tender dish every time.

Does Velveting Chicken Really Work?

Absolutely! Velveting ensures delicious and tender meat without compromising on quality, taste, or health. While traditional velveting techniques often involve blanching, there are adaptations that use frying, which might add more oil to your dishes. Regardless of the method, velveting consistently delivers high-quality results, making your chicken and vegetable stir fry truly enjoyable.

Can You Velvet Chicken Thighs?

Yes, you can use the velveting technique on dark meat like chicken thighs as well as chicken breast. This method is also effective for beef and pork, resulting in super tender meat. By applying this technique, you ensure that every bite of your velveted chicken and vegetables stir fry is deliciously tender and flavorful. This approach adds versatility to your cooking, allowing you to experiment with different meats while keeping the dish consistently excellent.

What Does It Mean to Velvet Chicken?

Velveting chicken involves putting it through a tenderizing process before cooking. This method changes the texture of the meat, resulting in super succulent chicken. One popular technique is the baking soda velveting process, which ensures that every piece of chicken in your stir fry is tender and flavorful. This process enhances the overall dish, making it a standout choice for your meals.

Does Velveting Help with Woody Breast Meat?

Yes, the Chinese technique of velveting can greatly improve woody chicken breasts. If you have stringy-texture commercial chicken breast meat, this method is perfect for enhancing the final texture of your cooked chicken. By using velveting, you can transform tough, fibrous meat into tender and delicious pieces, making your velveted chicken and vegetables stir fry truly enjoyable.

Is Velveting Chicken Unhealthy?

Not at all! This recipe uses the baking soda method, which doesn’t add any calories to the dish. The baking soda simply helps to break down meat, making the texture of the chicken super tender. This technique ensures that your velveted chicken and vegetables stir fry is both healthy and delicious, without any added guilt.

Velveted Chicken & Veggies Stir Fry: The Secret to Tenderness!