Chock full of protein and good-for-you vitamins and minerals, and with a sweet-and-savory sauce you’ll want to dive right into, this chicken and asparagus stir fry hits the spot. Done in 30 minutes and with easy-to-find ingredients, you’ll want to bookmark this dish for your meal planning ASAP.
If you love easy stir fry recipes, then you’ll also want to check out my Quick and Easy Beef Noodle Stir Fry, Mango Chicken Stir Fry, and Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry.
Chicken is like this magical protein, isn’t it? Wave your wand (or wooden spoon) over it a few times and — voila! — dinner is served. At least, it seems that easy. Chicken is a staple in my house for sure (just take one peek in my freezer and you’ll see what I mean) and is my go-to on those days and nights when I need a quick, tasty meal to serve my family or an unexpected crowd.
I had chicken, I had asparagus, I had sauce ingredients…dinner was served in just 30 minutes!
Why This Recipe Works
Pantry staples – There’s no fancy ingredients here. Just pantry staples you probably already have and if you don’t…every grocery store should carry them. No need to go to a specialty store.
Customizable – Use pork or beef instead of chicken, or use broccoli, green beans, or any other veggie you like instead of asparagus. Chicken and vegetable stir fry is such a great meal to make when you want to use up what you have in your fridge and freezer.
Fast – Did I mention thishealthy chicken stir fry can be ready in just 30 minutes? You can make rice or noodles too while the stir fry cooks, so no additional time added on there either for a complete meal.
Great for meal planning – Double this recipe and eat it for the next night or two. Also makes a great on-the-go lunch. I’ve been known to eat this asparagus chicken it cold, it’s that good!
How to Make Chicken Stir Fry
- Cut the boneless, skinless chicken breasts into 1.5-inch pieces for easy, even cooking. Set them aside and (this part is important) picked up a new, fresh, clean cutting board and knife and cut up the asparagus and set that aside in a different dish.
- In a large cast iron skillet, other kind of skillet, Dutch oven, or any larger pot, drizzle the olive oil (or any oil you prefer), and then added the chicken.
- Sauté the chicken over medium-high heat until it is nice and browned on the outside. Then, add the asparagus and cook those both together for a few more minutes.
- Turn the burner down and in another bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients and pour them into the pan with the chicken and asparagus, turning the burner heat back to medium.
- Make the corn starch and water slurry in another little bowl then added the slurry to the pan and stir some more until the sauce started to get nice and thick.
- Pull the pan off the heat and add the garnishes of sesame seeds and green onions. I served this chicken stir fry recipe over rice, but you can serve it plain or over noodles or however you like it.
Expert Tips
- Make it spicy by adding 1/4-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or 1-2 teaspoons sriracha to the sauce to give this dish a spicy kick!
- Switch it up and use any veggies you like! Broccoli, onions, bell peppers, baby corn, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts, and zucchini are a few of my favorites!
- This chicken and asparagus stir fry will keep in the fridge for 3-5 days so you can enjoy it all week long!
How to Clean Raw Chicken Off of a Cutting Board
It’s soooo important to clean your cutting boards the right way, especially when you’ve used them for raw meat or shellfish. I often will either cut up my non-meat items first, then do the meat so as not to contaminate the vegetables, herbs, or spices with the raw chicken. Raw chicken can contain bacteria such as samonella that gives us food poisoning. Trust me you do not want food poisoning, nor do you want anyone in your family — especially any little ones — to come down with a case of that. It’s just awful.
For a sparkling clean cutting board, remember to:
- Start with a clean cutting board to begin with.
- Wash your cutting boards in hot, soapy water, rinse with hot water, and either air dry them or use paper towels to dry them.
- If you are cutting meat, add the step of spraying your boards down with bleach and water before washing to cut down on germs.
- You can always put your cutting boards in the dishwasher as well so long as they are not made of a laminate wood. Those will come apart.
- Pitch those boards that are worn down, have deep grooves that you can no longer clean, or cracks (like in the wooden ones) that could harbor those nasty germs.
More Recipes You’ll Love
- Vegetable Stir Fry
- Beef Noodle Stir Fry
- Teriyaki Beef Stir Fry
- Easy Stir Fry Sauce
- Chicken and Broccoli Stir Fry
Did you make this recipe? AMAZING! Tag me on social and rate the recipe below!
Chicken Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts - cut into 1.5 inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 pound asparagus - ends trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces
- ½ cup sliced mushrooms
- ⅓ cup reduced sodium soy sauce - (use a little less if you are using regular)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 tablespoons corn starch + 3 tablespoons cold water - whisked til dissolved
- chopped green onions and sesame seeds, for garnish
Instructions
- Drizzle a large skillet with oil. Saute chicken 3-4 minutes until browned on the outside.
- Add asparagus and mushrooms to the pan and continue to saute 3-4 minutes until chicken is cooked through and asparagus and mushrooms are tender.
- Whisk together the soy sauce, chicken broth, hoisin, garlic, brown sugar, sesame oil, and ginger. Pour into pan.
- Once sauce begins to bubble, stir in corn starch and water mixture. Stir 1 minute until sauce thickens.
- Remove from heat, garnish with sesame seeds and green onions and serve.
Flavorful and delicious!
I used chicken thighs marinated them with 2 T of the uncooked sauce
FRESH GINGER
added green onions to the chicken marinade.
Definitely a winner
This sounds fabulous and I’m trying it tonight as, serendipitously, I have all the ingredients to hand. One comment on the recipe – you give the nutritional information, which is most welcome, but without a weight for the chicken it doesn’t really mean a great deal – chicken breast size can vary enormously. So – how much chicken by weight do you actually use?
Good starting recipe, quite versatile, but the flavor was a tad too sweet- needs a hint of acid. We added red bell pepper and mushrooms, which helped.
Where’s the bowl from in the picture?
Hi Chet! I actually had it custom made! I wish I had a link for you- it’s my fav.
I pretty much never follow recipes, but I needed a good place to begin – and your recipe was great. Thanks!