This zucchini stir-fry with chicken is SO tasty, you’ll want to keep zucchini in the fridge all the time to make it! In this recipe, we share a simple tip to maintain a crisp (not mushy) texture on zucchini after stir-frying.
An Abundance of Zucchini
As we talked about in our Summer Garden Tour, our zucchini plants have been one of the most prolific producers in the garden this season!
Every week for the last couple months, we’ve been getting five or six of them out of the garden. If they’re hiding in the plant or we miss one, we end up with huge honking mutant zucchini (a phenomenon that most growers of zucchini have encountered at one time or another).
For all you gardeners out there who’ve grown zucchini this summer, only to end up with more than you know what to do with, the key to using it all is: variety!
We’ve been surprisingly quite able to use up all our zucchini as it comes in. We’ve put it on pizza and into omelets, made it into zoodles, and put it into our Roasted Ratatouille Pasta. We’ve also used it in zucchini dumplings, Chinese zucchini pancakes, everyday vegetable stir-fries, and zucchini with glass noodles.
Our new favorite of all these zucchini recipes, however, is this Zucchini Stir-fry with Chicken. It’s super simple and delicious, and the zucchini has a crisp texture and sweet flavor that perfectly complements strips of juicy chicken.
The Secret to Crisp-Tender Zucchini
Zucchini can sometimes end up quite soft and perhaps even a little mushy after cooking. For some dishes, like our zucchini with glass noodles, that soft texture is actually what you’re going for.
But for a stir-fry like this, you really want the zucchini to remain crisp-tender after cooking. The key to this is a simple step: salting the zucchini after slicing it.
Zucchini is actually 90% water, which is why it breaks down so quickly during cooking. This is why, if you’re making zoodles, you don’t really want to cook them. You just warm them up so they stay basically raw and al dente.
By salting the zucchini slices, though, you’re drawing out a lot of the water. This not only ensures the zucchini still has a bit of “bite” after cooking, it also prevents the sauce in the stir-fry from getting watered down!
The salting process only takes 20-30 minutes, so you can do it while the chicken is marinating and you’re preparing the sauce mixture and the garlic. All in all, this dish only takes about 30-40 minutes to make.
Serve with steamed rice, and you have a tasty and balanced meal!
Zucchini Stir-fry Recipe Instructions
In a small bowl, add the sliced chicken, water, cornstarch, oil, and oyster sauce. Mix until the chicken has absorbed all the marinade ingredients.
Set aside to marinate at room temperature for about 20-30 minutes.
TIP for slicing Chicken
You want to slice the chicken into small strips for this recipe, so you get a piece of chicken with every bite of zucchini! To make slicing easier, partially freeze the chicken breast or thighs until firm. If using chicken out of the freezer, defrost it just until you’re able to slice it.
Add the zucchini slices to a large bowl, and toss with the salt. Let stand for 20-30 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the sauce mixture. In a liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, combine the water (or chicken stock), oyster sauce, cornstarch, light soy sauce, sugar, white pepper, and sesame oil.
Rinse the zucchini to remove the salt. Then gently squeeze the excess liquid out of the zucchini, and set it aside.
Now you’re ready to cook! Heat your wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of the oil. Add the chicken in roughly one layer, and allow it to sear undisturbed for 15-20 seconds. Then stir-fry until the chicken turns opaque. Remove from the wok to a plate/bowl and set aside.
To the wok, add the remaining tablespoon of oil, along with the garlic. Cook for 15 seconds, and then add the Shaoxing wine to deglaze the wok. Then add the zucchini, and stir-fry for 15 seconds.
Mix your sauce mixture to ensure the cornstarch is fully incorporated. Add it to the wok, and bring to a simmer. As it simmers, you’ll see the sauce thicken into a gravy-like consistency.
Add the chicken back to the wok, and stir-fry for another 30 seconds. The sauce should be coating the vegetables and chicken, and the zucchini should be crisp-tender.
Serve immediately with steamed rice!
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Recipe
Zucchini Stir-fry with Chicken
Ingredients
For the chicken & marinade:
- 12 ounces boneless skinless chicken thighs (or chicken breast; sliced into small strips)
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon oil (any neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola oil)
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
For the rest of the dish:
- 1 1/2 pounds zucchini (sliced in half lengthwise, then sliced on a sharp angle into thin strips)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup water (or low sodium chicken stock)
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons oil (any neutral oil, such as vegetable or canola oil)
- 2 cloves garlic (chopped)
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
Instructions
- In a small bowl, add the sliced chicken, water, cornstarch, oil, and oyster sauce. Mix until the chicken has absorbed all the marinade ingredients. Set aside to marinate at room temperature for about 20-30 minutes.
- Add the zucchini slices to a large bowl, and toss with the salt. Let stand for 20-30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make the sauce mixture. In a liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, combine the water (or chicken stock), oyster sauce, cornstarch, light soy sauce, sugar, white pepper, and sesame oil.
- Rinse the zucchini to remove the salt. Then gently squeeze the excess liquid out of the zucchini, and set it aside.
- Now you’re ready to cook! Heat your wok over high heat until it just starts to smoke, and add 1 tablespoon of the oil. Add the chicken in one layer, and allow it to sear undisturbed for 15-20 seconds. Then stir-fry until the chicken turns opaque. Remove from the wok to a plate/bowl and set aside.
- To the wok, add the remaining tablespoon of oil, along with the garlic. Cook for 15 seconds, and then add the Shaoxing wine to deglaze the wok. Then add the zucchini, and stir-fry for 15 seconds.
- Mix your sauce mixture to ensure the cornstarch is fully incorporated. Add it to the wok, and bring to a simmer. As it simmers, you’ll see the sauce thicken into a gravy-like consistency.
- Add the chicken back to the wok, and stir-fry for another 30 seconds. The sauce should be coating the vegetables and chicken, and the zucchini should be crisp-tender. Serve immediately over steamed rice!
