Name: Spicy Chicken and Green Beans
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 1 lb sliced boneless, skinless chicken breast; 1 tbsp cornstarch; 1 tbsp oil; 1/4 tsp salt; 1 tsp soy sauce; 1 lb green beans; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 5 dried whole chili peppers, optional; 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes; 1 tbsp chili garlic sauce; 1 tbsp soy sauce; 1 tbsp oyster sauce

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Green beans with the juiciest chicken breast stir-fried with garlic chili sauce and dried whole chili peppers serves as a satisfying meal on top of steamed white rice. This stir-fry is super easy to make on a weeknight after a tiring day of work.

Spicy chicken and green beans stir-fry served in a black bowl on a rustic surface with a bowl of steamed rice

Back when I used to work for a Chinese fast food restaurant in a mall food court, there was an underrated spicy chicken and green bean dish that we served. During lunchtime and at the end of the shift, I would gladly take any of the leftover spicy chicken and green beans. I’m going to share my version of that dish with you.

Equipment

Large saute pan or wok
Spatula

Ingredients

Green beans – I prefer to purchase green beans with the stems trimmed off, so it will be less work.
Chicken breast – Chicken thigh can be a substitute, but don’t worry about the chicken breast being too dry. We have a trick to make chicken breast tender here!
Cornstarch – The key ingredient to make chicken breast tender in this recipe!
Neutral-flavoured oil
Salt
Soy sauce
Dried whole chili peppers – You can find these at your local Asian supermarket. They are mostly for aesthetics for this dish, as most of the heat will be coming from the red chili flakes and chili garlic sauce. (I personally don’t eat the whole chili peppers, but I know some people do). This is more of an optional ingredient.
Garlic – I never find the chili garlic sauce garlicky enough, so I like to add extra garlic for more flavour.
Crushed red pepper flakes – This recipe looks better with Chinese or Korean pepper flakes since they have a brighter red colour than the kind you find in Western supermarkets. The one from Western supermarkets are on the browner side, but they still work.
Chili garlic sauce – I’ve been seeing this sold in Western grocery stores lately, so you can usually find chili garlic sauce there. It not only adds heat to your dish, but also acidity and umami.
Oyster sauce – I’ve also been seeing this often at Western grocery stores. This will add saltiness, umami, and sweetness to the dish.

How to Make Spicy Chicken and Green Beans Stir-Fry

We’ll be using a fool-proof method to make the most tender chicken breast slices in this stir-fry. It’s called velveting. We’ll mix the sliced chicken breast in cornstarch, oil, salt and soy sauce.

Sliced raw chicken breast in a glass bowl topped with cornstarch, salt, and soy sauce

Mixing sliced raw chicken breast with cornstarch, soy sauce and salt

The key ingredient to velveting chicken breast is cornstarch. The cornstarch acts as a moisture barrier so the moisture stays within the chicken breast even as it’s being cooked and browned. At the end, you’ll get uber-tender chicken breast. Let the chicken breast sit in the marinade for 15 minutes.

Pan-fry the chicken breast slices on medium heat, flipping the pieces of chicken occasionally, until browned. Set the chicken aside.

Cooking sliced raw chicken breast on a non-stick pan with a spatula

While the chicken is cooking, bring a pot of water to a boil. You can fill the pot with enough water to submerge the green beans or just enough so that the water doesn’t completely evaporate after a few minutes. I fill my saucepan about 1- 2 inches high with water sometimes, so some of the green beans are blanched but some are cooked through steam. Throw in the green beans and cover the pot with a lid. Blanch/ steam them until they are at your desired level of tenderness. This takes about 3 – 4 minutes. Set the green beans aside.

Partially blanching and steaming green beans in a stainless steel sauce pan on an electric stove

Using the same pan you fried the chicken in, pan-fry the garlic and whole dried chili peppers (if using) until fragrant.

Frying minced garlic and whole dried chili peppers on a non-stick pan using a spatula

Add the chicken breast and green beans to the pan or wok along with red pepper flakes, chili garlic sauce, soy sauce and oyster sauce. Stir-fry until the chicken and green beans are well-coated in the sauces.

Stir frying green beans and chicken with chili peppers

And that’s how you make spicy chicken and green beans stir-fry that tastes just as good as take-out, but healthier!