Chinese Moo Goo Gai Pan (Chicken with Mushrooms)

I'm going to offer another healthy Asian dish here, mild flavored and should please chicken and mushroom lovers.  You'll find some variation of it at most any Chinese restaurant but you can easily make it at home.  It's another of my favorites around here.

INGREDIENTS
3/4 Pound Chicken Breasts (Skinless/Boneless)
1 Cup Mushrooms (Sliced)
1/2 Cup Chicken Broth (Recommend Low Sodium)
1/2 Cup Water Chestnuts (Sliced)
1/2 Cup Fresh or Frozen Chinese Snow Peas
OR
1/2 Cup Fresh Bean Sprouts in place of Chinese Snow Peas
2 Tablespoons Ginger Root (Fresh Grated)
2 Cloves Garlic (Grated)
2 Tablespoons Corn Starch
2 Tablespoons Oyster Sauce
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
1 Teaspoon Sugar
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
1 Tablespoon White Wine

We're going to be making a marinade and a sauce for this dish, so I will explain them separately.  They are not difficult to do.  Just remember which is which!  First, however, let's prepare the ingredients.

PREPARATION
Wash the chicken breasts and remove any excess fat.  Slice the breasts into narrow strips, about 1/8 inch thick.  If you're using canned Water Chestnuts, drain the liquid and rinse them in fresh water several times to remove the taste of the can.  Slice the fresh mushrooms about 1/8 inch thick.  Peel and grate the fresh Ginger Root and Garlic cloves.  I cut the Snow Peas into bite size pieces, as well.

Now we'll start by making the marinade, since we are going to marinate the strips of chicken breast.

MARINADE
With the strips of chicken in a bowl, add the Soy Sauce, White Wine Sesame Oil and 1 Tablespoon of Cornstarch in that order.  I know that's not much, but mix it around well and make sure it comes in contact with the chicken.  Allow the chicken to rest in the marinade for at least 15 minutes....30 minutes is my preference.  While you're waiting is a good time to prepare the vegetables you are going to use.

SAUCE
In another bowl, prepare the sauce we're going to use.  Mix the Chicken Broth, Oyster Sauce, Sugar and remaining Tablespoon of Cornstarch.  Your sauce is now ready to use.

In a big frying pan, or a Wok, if you have and use one,  heat 2 Tablespoons of olive oil and stir fry the chicken breast.  Do not cook the chicken completely...just until it turns color and is no longer raw looking.  Remove the chicken from the pan and set it aside for the moment.

Now add the remaining 1 Tablespoon of Olive Oil to the pan.  Add the Ginger and Garlic to the pan and quickly stir fry.  Add the Mushrooms and stir fry them for a few additional seconds.  Now, add the Water Chestnuts and the Snow Peas or Bean Sprouts to the pan and continue to stir fry.

Quickly re-stir your sauce to make sure it is well mixed.  Move the ingredients in the pan to the sides, making a "hole" in the center of the pan.  Pour your sauce into the hole and stir until it thickens.  As soon as the sauce has thickened some, add the chicken back to the pan.  Mix all the ingredients in the pan together so they are all coated well with the sauce.

Once all the ingredients are mixed together well and coated with sauce, it's ready to serve!  The dish goes well with a nice side order of steamed sticky rice or fried rice.  (I will soon offer a recipe for my fried rice).

Enjoy!!

If you have questions, please feel free to email me at: stan.kain@gmail.com  And you may subscribe to my Recipe Blog for updates and new recipes as I add them.  If you enjoy the dish, please feel free to share the recipe with family and friends!