Chicken and broccoli cooked wok style paired with a sweet teriyaki sauce & hint of spicy peppers makes this Wok Chicken and Broccoli a flavorful, guilt-free meal.
With the new year’s resolution health buzz in full swing, I thought a delicious, full-flavor, healthy dinner recipe would be nice to share. This Easy Wok Chicken and Broccoli with rice is amazing and delicious in all it’s simplicity. It’s the chicken in winner, winner, chicken dinner! The smokey wok-flavored chicken and broccoli paired with a sweet Asian teriyaki style sauce and hint of heat makes this a guilt-free, flavorful meal that won’t break that “healthier me in 2017” new year’s resolution. Full of fresh ingredients and lots delicious elements, it’s a must try. You will be so happy you did!
I, and my family have a love for Asian food. Thai, Chinese, Japanese, you name it, we probably like it. We love cooking, and eating, dishes that incorporate fresh ingredients and flavors. My husband, Ryan, would eat stirfry, fish or pho every night if I would make it.
Oh boy, was I surprised on Christmas morning. Ryan gave me an induction hot plate and a cast iron wok. This was a little outside my comfort zone. I hadn’t had much experience cooking with cast iron other than the occasional dutch oven meal while camping, let along a cast iron wok.
Cooking with this wok has been a learning experience. I can dare say the first few batches of food that came out of it weren’t exactly delicious. But after trial and error, I feel one step closer to mastering my new cast iron wok. I cook with my wok at least once a week, whether for lunch or dinner. I’m still learning, but the food I turn out is so good, fresh and full of flavor. Lo Meins, veggie stirfrys, Thai, Chinese… it’s all so delicious!
For dinner last night we had this chicken and broccoli with rice. While we ate the tasty Asian inspired wok food, Ryan said: “well, I guess we don’t need to go out for Chinese anymore.” Haha. It was probably the best compliment he could have given me. He’s my biggest critic around the dining room table. With that said, I feel more confident than ever in sharing with you, this amazing and Easy Wok Chicken and Broccoli recipe. I’ll also be sharing a few cast iron wok tips and tricks I learn the hard way and hope they help you move a few steps closer to Master of the Wok status.
The full printable recipe is below. To make this Easy Wok Chicken and Broccoli recipe, here’s what you’ll need as far as ingredients go.
- Chicken, sliced
- Broccoli, cut into small florets
- Sesame oil and high heat oil (coconut, peanut, etc)
- Fresh ginger, minced
- Fresh garlic, minced
- Red chili flakes
- Sauce (recipe below)
Once the pan is oiled add the chicken. It will immediately begin to sear. That sizzling and searing sound is exactly what you want to hear. Using the spatula, move the chicken every few seconds. Cook until you no longer see any pink raw meat. If the pan is over 550 degrees it should only take a minute or two.
Once the chicken is cooked almost all the way through, push to the upper part of the pan and add the broccoli florets. Don’t add water. You want the broccoli and chicken to get seared not steamed. Cook broccoli until it starts sweating. The easiest way to explain what that looks like is, the broccoli will look slightly wet and be bright green. It takes about 1-3 minutes, again, if your pan was above 550 degrees when you started.
Once the broccoli has reached this point, push it up onto the side of the pan, where the chicken is. Add sesame oil to the pan and the garlic, ginger and chili flakes. Heat for a few seconds to release the aromas.
Then stir the broccoli and chicken back in. Heat for 15-45 seconds. Lastly, add your sauce. Stir until thickened. It only takes 30 seconds, if that, for the sauce to thicken. Once the sauce has thickened, immediately remove the food from the wok.
We love to eat this chicken and broccoli on a mound of jasmine rice, but if you wanted to go a little healthier brown rice is great too. This dish is one of our favorites. It’s quick, easy and so full of flavor. This is definitely a takeout fake-out recipe that will surprise anyone that tries it.
If you happen to have leftovers, which I’m guessing you won’t, but if you do, I swear they’re just as tasty, if not better, than hot out of the wok. It’s gotta have something to do with the chicken and veggies marinading in that delicious sauce overnight. Man! Now I wish I had some leftovers I could enjoy right now. Yummmmm!
I’d love to hear from you. Drop a comment below. Do you own a wok or would you like to cook with one? What’s your favorite takeout fake out dish?
Here’s a little plug for all you penny pinchers like me… Zaycon Fresh for amazing quality meats! If you haven’t heard of or ordered from Zaycon Fresh, you totally need to check them out. They have a bunch of different meat products, from chicken and pork to beef steaks and ground meat. It’s all-natural, high-quality stuff for a fraction of supermarket price. I just ordered a 40lb case of chicken breast for less than $1.50 per pound. Crazy!
Zaycon Fresh for the WIN!
Easy Wok Chicken and Broccoli with rice
Yield:
4 servings
Prep Time:
15 minutes
Cook Time:
7 minutes
Total Time:
22 minutes
The smokey wok-flavored chicken & broccoli paired with a sweet Asian teriyaki sauce & hint of spicy heat makes this Easy Wok Chicken and Broccoli a flavorful, guilt-free dish.
Ingredients
- 1 inch chicken breast, sliced thin--1/8 thick slices (about a 1/2 lb)
- 3 cups broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces
- 1-2 Tablespoons peanut or coconut oil
- 1/2-1 Tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons ginger, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 red chili flakes, optional
- Cooked rice
For Sweet Teriyaki Sauce:
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 2 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 - 1 1/2 Tablespoons cornstarch
Instructions
For the sauce:
- In a small bowl, whisk all ingredients for the sauce together. Set aside until ready to use.
For the dish:
- Heat wok on high heat. 550-600 degrees.
- Once temperature has been reached, add peanut/coconut oil. Using a wok spatula, coat wok with oil.
- Add chicken. Stir frequently. Cook until no longer pink. (1.5 to 2 minutes). Push chicken out of the bottom and onto the side of the wok.
- Add broccoli pieces. Stir frequently. Cook until broccoli begins to sweat or look wet. (1 to 2 minutes). Push broccoli out of the bottom near the chicken.
- Add sesame oil, garlic, ginger and red chili flakes to the bottom of the wok. Stir for a few seconds to allow the aromas to be released.
- Stir broccoli and chicken back in. Heat for another 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Add sauce. Stir until sauce thickens. (15-45 seconds).
- Immediately remove food from wok.
- Serve over rice.
Notes
- High heat is critical for good wok cooking. Make sure wok is over 550-600 degrees before starting.
- Use oils with high temperature smoking points such as peanut or coconut oil.
- Do not add water to any part of this dish. Wok cooking is meant to sear and char the edges of the food. This is what gives it that unique wok flavor. Adding water will inhibit this and steam the food.
- If using a cast iron wok, pour a couple cups of water into the wok right after removing the food. This will help avoid any remaining sauce or food from burning onto the wok.
- If you plan to cook a second batch, rinse and wipe out wok before using again, otherwise the remaining sauce will make the next batch taste burnt.
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Original post: 1.21.17 Updated: 1.31.18
Yes, it should still work. It’s best to cook wok food over high heat. The goal is to quickly cook it not steam it. Good luck and I hope you love this recipe. Thanks for stopping by!
Wok food is best cooked at a very high heat and fast. I’d heat the wok on medium-high to high until the oil begins to put off a little smoke then begin cooking. I hope this helps and enjoy the recipe!
I have a stainless steel wok will this recipe still work???
I have a stainless steel wok so what temperature should I be using???
That’s for sharing your experience! So happy you enjoyed this recipe. 🙂
I didn’t have broccoli so I used asparagus . I had a few mushrooms that I also used. It was so delicious! I will definitely use this recipe again. Thanks for sharing,
Renee
Yes, that should work just fine. I use an induction hot plate (Nuwave) because my wok is cast iron with a flat bottom that can sit on it. The downside to this setup is I have to be careful not to overfill the wok or it drops the temp too quickly. I can easily end up with steamed food rather than stirfried if you know what I mean.
hi rachel…can’t wait to try this recipe…i am intrigued by your hot plate…what brand and model do you use? i have an 18″ round bottom wok, would this work? my current setup with an outdoor propane burner is a bit cumbersome.
thank you
Hey,
Good work! Thanks for sharing information. I get more info from it. I should try this at my home.
Perfect combination of fresh and healthy ingredients, Rachel! Thanks to your recipe I can prepare a delicious and healthy meal.
Thanks Jeanine! A wok has been such a great addition to my kitchen cookware.
My husband loves Asian dishes, and this looks easy to recreate. I love your wok!
This sounds so yummy! Its so quick in the wok too which is great and I really love the sound of flavours combined.
This just looks and sounds delicious. We don’t have a wok, so I need to pick one up. I will need to try this recipe out because it looks so tasty!
Yum! This looks like a great weekday meal!
xo
jen
effortlesseverydaystyle.com
Yum I love this recipe! Great pictures too. The meal looks so fresh. I love cooking with ginger and sesame oil Will definitely give this a try!
I love making new recipes!! This looks like one that my kids would love for dinner time!
Yummy! Chicken and broccoli is one of my favorites and I love finding new ways to do it up!
This recipe looks really good. I love broccoli! If only I could get my kiddos to eat it!
I love the step by step directions! And such an easy recipe! Looking forward to adding this to my easy weeknight recipe 🙂
My family will love this dish. I agree, I think that sometimes the dish is even better the second day! It is always true for me!
I’m always looking for easy weeknight meals that aren’t boring. My Husband would love this and it look so quick to put together. I can’t waste time in the kitchen!
chicken, rice and broccoli are literally three of my favorite foods!
Wow! I would not anticipate it being so easy. Cooking at home means that you control so much with the recipe and the health aspects, so this is something I definitely want to try.
Thanks Melanie! I didn’t know what I was missing until I started using a wok. The smokey singed flavor that is most easily created using a wok is so worth the investment.
Thanks Christina!
That looks amazing. I am always a fan of healthy cooking and a hint of heat makes healthy food even tastier. We don’t have a wok, but now I think we need to get one.
I remember my mom using a wok when I was a child and we always loved it! Everything about this dish sounds and looks yummy!
It always amazes me at how seasame oil changes the flavor of a dish. We were making a similar fried rice recipe at our house and someone suggested it to me and it made it so much better! I’ll have to try this quick recipe next time I want Chinese. Thanks!
Love my wok and it is so easy, simple and fast to make a stir fry. This is one of our favorites.
I love Asian recipes and I imagine that this dish is full of unique flavors. I am also a huge fan of chicken dishes so I know I would enjoy sampling this one.
Oh my gosh!!! I love this. This dish is amazing! I love food that comes out of the wok. And the cast iron just makes it taste better. I am so excited to try this one.