Chicken Stir-Fry With Black Beans -

Chicken Stir-Fry With Black Beans

Chinese food offers lots of flavours, but very little fat.

Ingredients

1 egg white
3 teaspoons cornflour
2 skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
½ tablespoon groundnut oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2.5cm (1in) fresh root ginger, peeled and grated
Pinch of dried red chilli flakes
1 tablespoon Chinese black beans, finely chopped
1 carrot, sliced on the diagonal
½ red pepper, seeded and cut into diamonds
½ yellow pepper, seeded and cut into diamonds
125 ml (4½fl oz) chicken stock
1 tablespoon reduced-salt dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
Pinch of sugar
75g (3oz) sugar-snap peas
4 spring onions, sliced on the diagonal

Method

Lightly beat the egg white in a non-metallic bowl with half the cornflour. Add the chicken, cover with clingfilm and chill for 30 minutes (this is called velveting).

Place 300ml (10fl oz) water in a pan and bring to the boil. Stir the chicken and then remove from the bowl with a slotted spoon. Remove the pan from the heat and add the chicken, stirring to prevent it from sticking together, then return to the heat and cook for 1½ minutes or until the chicken is white and just tender. Drain on kitchen paper.

Heat a wok and swirl in the oil. Add the garlic, ginger, chilli flakes and black beans and stir-fry for 15 seconds, then add the carrot and stir-fry for 1 minute. Stir in the cooked chicken and the peppers. Pour in the stock, then add the soy sauce, vinegar and sugar, stirring to combine.

Increase the heat and bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add the sugar-snap peas and spring onions and cook for 2 minutes. Mix the remaining cornflour with 1 tablespoon water and stir into the wok. Cook for a minute or so until the sauce clears and thickens.

Serve at once in Chinese-style bowls with steamed rice.

Per serving:- 289 kcals, 5g fat, 1g saturated fat, 22g carbohydrate, 0.95g sodium

Related food category:

• Light Meals and Appetisers