Hunan Chicken

Ingredients

• 1 pound chicken breast (boneless and skinless, cut into bite-sized pieces)
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
• 2 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 medium carrot (sliced 1/4" thin diagonally)
• 1 stalk celery (sliced into 1/2" pieces diagonally)
• 1 red bell pepper (sliced into 1/2" strips)
• 1/2 red onion (sliced into 1/4" thin strips)
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 3-6 dried chilies (whole, as per your spice preference)
• 1 tablespoon garlic (minced)
• 1 tablespoon ginger (minced)
• 1/4 cup peanuts (roughly chopped)
• 1/4 cup soy sauce (low sodium)
• 1/2 cup chicken broth (low sodium)
• 2 tablespoon oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 teaspoon chili garlic sauce (aka sambal oelek)

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the chicken: Add the chicken, cornstarch, and pepper to a mixing bowl. Toss well to completely coat each piece of chicken. Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces, working in batches if needed. Cook until browned on all sides. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.

2. 2

   Cook the veggies: If needed, add more sesame oil. Add the carrot, celery, bell pepper, broccoli, onion, and chilies to the pan. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the veggies soften, 4-5 minutes.

3. 3

   Make the hunan sauce: Whisk all the sauce ingredients together in a bowl.

4. 4

   Incorporate the sauce: Stir the garlic and ginger in with the veggies and sauté for another 30 seconds. Pour the sauce into the skillet and reduce the heat to medium. Stir constantly until the sauce thickens.

5. 5

   Finish: Add the chicken back to the skillet and toss well to coat in the sauce. Garnish with chopped peanuts and serve over noodles or rice.