Take this from someone who loves a good midweek chicken stir fry; this is the ONE to make. Don’t believe I’m the chicken stir fry queen? Have you seen the one with black pepper, my jalapeño chicken, or the saucy chicken broccoli stir fry? This Chicken zucchini stir fry is one of those meals that I find myself making all the time. It’s easy because the same ingredients I use in the sauce are the ones that go into the marinade for the chicken. And it’s quick and healthy and flavorful enough to serve for weeknight dinner and to box up for desk lunches the next day! Plus the total time on this recipe is around 40 minutes – and that’s with 20 minutes of marination time. I keep the vegetables pretty simple with just a white onion and some zucchini, but you could add a red bell pepper for color, swap the zucchini for yellow squash in the summer, or skip the rice and serve this over cauliflower rice (to get in another vegetable and up your fiber intake!) The veggie possibilities are truly endless.
Ingredients for chicken zucchini stir fry recipe:
Chicken: Feel free to use boneless skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs for this recipe. Just be sure to cut them into thin strips so that they cook up in the time listed on the recipe. Heck, tenders would work too!Zucchini: You’ll need two zucchini for this recipe. I like to cut them into thin half-moon slices so that they all cook up in the pan at the same time as the onions.Onions: You’ll need half an onion; just be sure to dice it so that it cooks up at the same time as the zucchini slices.Cornstarch: we’ll coat the chicken with a bit of cornstarch so that it seals in the moisture. You’ll also need a bit of cornstarch to help thicken the sauce for this dish.Ponzu soy sauce: ponzu is a citrus-based sauce that is typically used in Japanese cooking made with soy sauce, tamari, rice vinegar, and bonito flakes, amongst other ingredients.Seasonings: I like to use garlic powder and red pepper flakes to season the chicken so that it has tons of flavor. Just sprinkle it all over before adding the cornstarch and the ponzu to create a marinade.Oyster sauce: I don’t use shellfish-based oyster sauce in my recipes, so what I’m actually using is a vegan-oyster-flavored sauce. Both oyster sauce and a vegan alternative would work for this recipe in case you are making this for someone with a shellfish allergy. I purchased mine from a local grocery store, but you can also find it here.Chicken Stock: You’ll need a splash of chicken stock for the sauce portion of the dish. I like to just whisk the stock, cornstarch pans, oyster sauce, pressed garlic, and chili crunch together in a bowl before adding it to the pan so that the sauce doesn’t need a cornstarch slurry at the end to thicken it!Garlic: You’ll need lots of minced garlic for the stir fry portion of this recipe. 6 cloves is what I used and that typically translates to 6 teaspoons of the jarred stuff.Chili crunch or chili crisp: I use this brand, but you can use any chili crunch that you typically like on your food! Use as much or as little as you would like to make this spicier. I recommend 1 teaspoon to keep things pretty mild!Cooking oil: You can use any high-heat cooking oil that you like. We typically cook with avocado oil, so that’s what I used.Sesame seeds: these are completely optional and just for garnish if you’d like.
Key Instructions for Zucchini Stir Fry with Chicken
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