Mongolian chicken is a super yummy dish and it couldn't be any easier to cook. The sauce is a lovely balance of salty and sweet with just a hint of spice. It is important to use dark soy in this recipe as it adds more depth and colour then normal soy would, similarly white pepper instead of black adds a more authentic flavour. Typically this Mongolian dish is serve with just spring onions in the sauce but I find its tastes even better with some other finely chopped veggies, like bell pepper, carrot or in this case broccoli. Perfect for a quick midweek meal... who needs a takeaway!
Prep time 10mins
Cooking time 15mins
2 medium chicken breast fillets, sliced very thinly (see my tips at the bottom for how to do this)
2tbsp cornflour (plus a little extra for later in the recipe)
1/4tsp white pepper
1.5tbsp veg oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1tbsp ginger paste
4 spring onions, rinsed and cut in to 1inch peices
3-4 tenderstem broccoli, sliced widthways, eg: the stem will be cut in to thin discs
2.5tbsp dark soy
1tbsp toasted sesame oil
1.5tsp brown sugar
1/4tsp dried chilli flakes (optional)
1tbsp water
Cooked basmati rice
In a bowl add the cornflour and season the white pepper, about 1/4tsp, then add the chicken and toss until well covered. Leave for to tenderise for about 30mins if possible.
In a small bowl mix all of the sauce ingredients together and set aside.
In a large frying pan or wok heat the veg oil on a medium-high.
Once the oil is heated add the chicken, cook until golden and cooked through, this should take about 3-4minutes. You can do this in batches if need be so that the chicken is cooking in one layer. Once you're happy the chicken is cooked remove from the pan and set aside.
Allow the pan to cool slightly. You should still have a little oil left in the pan from the chicken if not add a small dash more. Test the temperature of the oil to make sure it's not too hot and won't burn the garlic instantly, do this by adding little bit of garlic at first, if it gently sizzles then you can add the rest of the garlic and the ginger paste. Cook the garlic and ginger for a couple of minutes until fragrant, moving it often so it doesn't stick and burn.
Now add the sauce to the pan, it will look quite thin at the moment but fear not. Add 1tsp of cornflour to 1tbsp of cold water mix well then add to the frying pan. The sauce will thicken almost immediately. If it thickens too much add a splash of hot water until you reach a lovely sticky consistency like normal takeaway dishes.
Once you have the sauce to the correct consistency add the cooked chicken, spring onions and broccoli. Stir well until everything is coated in the delicious sticky sauce. Cook for a minute until everything has warmed through.
Serve over some steamed basmati rice.
Pop your chicken breasts in the freezer for about an hour before you need to slice it. This will firm the chicken up with out freezing it to much making it super easy to cut those authentic slithers that you find in the takeaways. Don't worry, the chicken slices will defrost in minutes.
