Fresh vegetables and chicken, quickly cooked in a hot stir fry is one of my favorite meals to make and serve. This dish is a fun twist on the usual Asian or Mexican flavors that I would typically think of for skillet meals.
I added corn as a base for this stir fry, because I had fresh corn waiting to be used. If you don’t have corn, simply serve it over rice and enjoy it that way. My kids enjoyed this meal with the corn and over rice.
My friend Donna was the inspiration for this dish. The blog that she and her husband Chad write, The Slow Roasted Italian, turns one year old today! HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to The Slow Roasted Italian! I wanted to create a recipe that would combine one of my favorite meals, the stir fry, with some of Donna’s favorite Italian flavors.
All three of my boys asked for seconds at dinner, so this meal was definitely a success. The only change I will make next time is that I will slice the peppers and onions thinner, in order to have them cook more quickly.
Italian Balsamic Chicken Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb chicken thighs or breasts diced into 1/2" pieces
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot
- 1 small red pepper sliced very thin
- 1 small green pepper sliced very thin
- 1 small onion sliced thin
- Optional: 2 ears of corn kernels removed
- 1 medium summer squash I used pattypan, crookneck or zucchini would work as well
- 1/4 cup garlic scapes roughly chopped into 1/2" pieces (substitute 1-2 cloves of garlic if scapes are not available)
- 2-3 tablespoons light flavor olive oil preferably not extra virgin (lighter oils will have a higher smoke point)
- kosher salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
Instructions
- Prep all ingredients prior to turning on the stove. Whisk together the balsamic and the honey, set aside. In a large bowl, sprinkle the arrowroot over the chicken pieces and toss well to coat. Once everything is ready to cook, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a very large skillet over medium high heat.
- Add the chicken pieces to the hot oil and season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat with oil and then let cook for 1-2 minutes, just until it begins to brown. Toss with tongs and continue cooking the other sides of the meat. When the meat is barely cooked through, remove to an empty bowl.
- Add the peppers and onions to the oil left in the pan and quickly toss with tongs or a wooden spatula. Continue tossing and cooking for a couple minutes, just until the vegetables are barely tender and still crisp. Remove cooked vegetables to the same bowl waiting with the chicken and add the squash, garlic and corn (if desired) to the skillet. Add a drizzle of oil if needed and quickly stir fry (tossing and stirring constantly) just until the squash starts to soften.
- Add everything back into the skillet and pour in the balsamic sauce. Cook just barely a minute or two, until all the pieces are coated with the sauce. Enjoy!
Sue/the view from great island says
Congratulations to Donna! This is the kind of meal you do so well, Mary. I find myself thinking of you when dinnertime catches me off guard and I don't know what to make. I wouldn't have thought to use the balsamic vinegar and honey, I really want to try that.
Beth says
Delicious! My youngest daughter is a picky eater, but I think she'd love this chicken.
Magnolia Verandah says
Stir frys are my favourite too – so quick and easy. Its funny what different terminology we use in different countries – for instance what is a scrape of garlic? Here it is always a clove – crushed, minced, chopped or thrown in whole.
Chris says
I did chicken stir fry for the past two nights, hard to beat them isn't it? I love how you changes the usual flavors to Italian!
The Slow Roasted Italian says
How did I miss this post? Thank you so much Miss Mary! What a sweet post. I can't stop smiling. I can't believe you let it slide for 9 days without mentioning it. Thank you my friend. XOXO
This looks like a very delciious meal with my favorite flavors, and the corn… Bellissima!
SnoWhite says
We enjoyed this for dinner tonight! Thanks.