These days we always have chicken in the freezer. There was a bunch of cilantro that was hanging on due to the great new storage hack and a quick one-pan dinner (this one from the NYT Cooking) is always good by me these days! Okay, because of the rice there were two pans, but I wasn’t washing the dishes. Serves 4:
Ginger Scallion Chicken
- 2 large scallions, roots trimmed
- ¼ cup peanut oil, or neutral oil, more as necessary
- 1 ¾ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems
- 1 (2 ½”) piece of ginger, cut into thin matchsticks (about 3 tablespoons)
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- Large pinch sugar
Cut the scallions in quarters lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1 1/2-inch-long pieces. You should end up with thin slivers of scallions. Separate out the dark green tops from the pale green and white parts (you don’t have to be very thorough — some mixing of colors is fine).
Heat oil in a wok or 12-inch skillet over very high heat. When it’s shimmering but not smoking, stir in chicken and salt. Cook, stirring almost constantly, until chicken is just cooked and no longer pink, 3 to 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer chicken onto a serving plate, leaving the oil in the pan. Immediately scatter cilantro and scallion greens (not whites) over hot chicken.
Return pan to medium-high heat. Make sure there are at least 2 tablespoons oil in it. If not, add more oil. Stir in ginger and cook until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Stir in scallion whites, soy sauce and sugar, and cook for another 30 seconds (if using a skillet, remove from heat). Immediately spoon the contents of the pan evenly over chicken and herbs. Serve and enjoy!
My Verdict:
Easy and really tasty! I tossed some green beans that I cut into about 2″ lengths in with the ginger and scallion whites so we would have a vegetable and served it all together over jasmine rice. We both thought some shitake mushrooms, sliced, would have been great. Now that they’re in season some asparagus could easily take the place of the green beans. In other words, this seems like a basis for a lot of experimentation—I’ll let you know how it goes! And if you haven’t tried the herb storage hack, try it. My cilantro has been in the fridge for over 3 weeks and it’s as if I just bought it.
