This dish is fabulously healthy and has the most delicious sauce! And, it’s packed with chicken and veggies. You’ll love the 2 cup serving size. Each, fiber-rich serving, has only 267 calories, 8 grams of fat. This recipe is a real keeper!
Why You'll Love My Deliciously Healthy Chicken and Veggies Stir-Fry
Combine delicious taste with wholesome goodness in one simple dish: Deliciously Healthy Chicken and Veggies Stir-Fry, a satisfying meal you can feel good about! This vibrant dish is a celebration of fresh, crisp vegetables and tender, lean chicken, all tossed in a flavorful sauce that’s both simple and satisfying. It’s the perfect solution for busy weeknights, offering a quick and easy way to pack in essential nutrients, vitamins, and lean protein. Imagine a colorful medley of your favorite vegetables, lightly sautéed to retain their crunch and flavor, combined with juicy chicken, all coated in a savory sauce that’s not heavy or greasy. This stir-fry is a fantastic way to enjoy a fulfilling and guilt-free meal that leaves you feeling energized and nourished, proving that healthy eating can be both delicious and incredibly simple. Say goodbye to boring dinners and hello to a vibrant, flavorful, and truly satisfying culinary experience!
Ingredient Spotlight: Unveiling the Goodness in Our Deliciously Healthy Chicken and Veggies Stir-Fry
Cooking Spray: This convenient kitchen aid plays a crucial role in minimizing added fat while ensuring our ingredients cook beautifully without sticking to the pan. A light coating of cooking spray creates a non-stick surface, allowing us to sauté the chicken and vegetables with minimal oil, contributing to a healthier, lower-calorie dish.Canola or Olive Oil: While we start with cooking spray, a touch of canola or olive oil adds a subtle richness and helps to conduct heat evenly for perfectly cooked ingredients. Canola oil is a neutral-flavored oil with a high smoke point, making it great for stir-frying.Olive oil, especially extra virgin, offers a more distinct flavor and healthy monounsaturated fats. The small amount used enhances the overall taste and cooking process without being overly heavy.Chicken Breasts (boneless, skinless), cut into bite-size pieces: The lean protein powerhouse of our stir-fry! Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are a fantastic source of high-quality protein, essential for muscle building and satiety.Cutting them into bite-size pieces ensures they cook quickly and evenly in the stir-fry, making each bite flavorful and easy to manage.Chopped Onions: These versatile vegetables provide a foundational savory flavor to our stir-fry. As they cook, chopped onions soften and release their natural sweetness, creating an aromatic base that complements the chicken and other vegetables. They add depth and complexity to the overall taste profile.Broccoli Florets: These miniature trees are nutritional powerhouses, packed with vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Broccoli florets add a lovely crisp-tender texture and a slightly earthy, fresh flavor to the stir-fry. Their vibrant green color also contributes to the visual appeal of the dish.Chopped Zucchini: This mild and versatile squash readily absorbs the surrounding flavors, making it a wonderful addition to our stir-fry. Chopped zucchini cooks quickly, offering a slightly tender texture and adding moisture to the dish. It's also a good source of hydration and some nutrients.Chopped Red Bell Pepper: Bursting with sweetness and a satisfying crunch, red bell peppers add a vibrant color and a boost of Vitamin C to our stir-fry. Their slightly sweet flavor complements both the chicken and the other vegetables, creating a well-balanced taste.Water: A small amount of water helps to create a bit of steam during the stir-frying process, which aids in cooking the vegetables quickly and evenly while keeping them tender-crisp. It also helps to deglaze the pan slightly, incorporating any flavorful bits into the overall dish.Shredded Cabbage: This often-underappreciated vegetable adds a wonderful texture and subtle sweetness to the stir-fry. Shredded cabbage cooks down slightly while retaining a pleasant crispness and absorbs the flavorful sauce beautifully, adding bulk and nutrients.Reduced-Sodium Soy Sauce (use Tamari sauce for gluten-free): The cornerstone of many Asian-inspired sauces, reduced-sodium soy sauce provides a savory, umami-rich flavor that is essential to our stir-fry. Using a reduced-sodium version helps to control the salt content. For those following a gluten-free diet, Tamari sauce is a fermented soy sauce that offers a similar depth of flavor without the gluten.Hoisin Sauce (use a gluten-free brand for gluten-free): This thick, dark, and fragrant sauce adds a complex blend of sweet, savory, and slightly tangy notes to our stir-fry. Hoisin sauce contributes a rich depth of flavor that complements the soy sauce and other seasonings. It's important to choose a gluten-free brand for those with dietary restrictions.Rice Vinegar: A mild and slightly sweet vinegar made from fermented rice, rice vinegar adds a touch of acidity to our sauce, balancing the sweetness of the brown sugar and the savory taste of the soy and hoisin sauces. It contributes a bright and tangy element that enhances the overall flavor profile.Sesame, Canola, or Olive Oil: A small amount of oil in the sauce adds richness and helps to emulsify the ingredients, creating a smoother and more cohesive sauce that coats the chicken and vegetables beautifully. Sesame oil offers a distinct nutty aroma and flavor, while canola or olive oil provide a more neutral base.8Brown Sugar: A touch of brown sugar adds a hint of sweetness to the sauce, balancing the savory and tangy elements and contributing to a more complex and well-rounded flavor profile. The molasses in brown sugar also adds a subtle caramel-like note.Red Pepper Flakes: These dried chili flakes provide a touch of heat to the sauce. The amount can be adjusted to your preference, allowing you to control the level of spiciness in your stir-fry. A small dash adds a subtle warmth that enhances the overall flavor.
How to Make Simple & Satisfying Chicken and Veggies Stir-Fry
Preparation is Key: Get Your Ingredients Ready
Prep Your Colorful Vegetables: The foundation of a great stir-fry lies in well-prepared vegetables. Wash and chop 2 cups of onions, 2 cups of broccoli florets, 2 cups of zucchini, and 1 cup of red bell pepper into bite-sized pieces. Having them ready to go ensures a smooth and efficient cooking process. Set these vibrant veggies aside.
Dice the Lean Protein: Take 1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts and cut them into uniform, bite-sized pieces. This ensures the chicken cooks evenly and quickly in the hot wok or pan. Set the diced chicken aside.
Whisk Together the Flavorful Sauce: In a small bowl, combine all the sauce ingredients: ¼ cup of reduced-sodium soy sauce (or Tamari for a gluten-free option), 2 tablespoons of Hoisin sauce (use a gluten-free brand if needed), 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon of sesame, canola, or olive oil, 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, and a dash of red pepper flakes (adjust to your spice preference). Mix these ingredients thoroughly until the brown sugar is completely dissolved, creating a smooth and flavorful sauce that will coat your stir-fry beautifully. Set the sauce aside.
The Stir-Fry Magic: Cooking to Perfection
Cook the Chicken First: Coat a large nonstick wok or pan generously with cooking spray. Heat the wok or pan over medium-high heat. Add the diced chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until it is cooked through and no longer pink inside. This usually takes about 5-7 minutes, depending on the size of your chicken pieces. Once cooked, remove the chicken from the wok or pan and transfer it to a clean plate. Set it aside.
Sauté the Hearty Vegetables: Return the same wok or pan to the heat and coat it with more cooking spray. Add 1 tablespoon of your chosen oil (canola or olive oil works well). Add the chopped onions, broccoli florets, zucchini, and red bell peppers to the hot wok or pan. Sauté these vegetables over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly. The goal is to cook them until the broccoli is tender-crisp, retaining a slight bite. Adding a couple of tablespoons of water during this stage can help to create a little steam and aid in cooking the vegetables evenly.
Incorporate the Cabbage: Add 1 (10-12 ounce) bag (about 5 cups) of shredded cabbage to the wok or pan with the other vegetables. Continue to sauté for another 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until the cabbage has softened slightly but still retains some texture.
Combine and Sauce: Turn the heat down to medium. Return the cooked chicken to the wok or pan with the sautéed vegetables. Pour the prepared sauce over the chicken and vegetables. Stir-fry for about 2 minutes, ensuring everything is thoroughly heated through and the sauce evenly coats all the ingredients. Stir constantly during this final stage to blend all the delicious flavors together.
Storage Tips for Leftovers:Any leftover stir-fry can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a few days. To reheat, simply stir-fry in a pan over medium heat until heated through, or microwave until warm.
Helpful Tips About this Recipe
Healthy Benefits Broccoli is a star member of the cruciferous family which is believed to help protect against cancer. It’s a super source of vitamin C, folate, vitamin B6, and fiber.Cabbage is a nutrient-dense, low calorie, food that provides an excellent source of vitamin C, potassium, folic acid, B6, biotin, calcium, and a respectable amount of fiber. In addition, studies have shown that cabbage has anticancer benefits. Shopping Tip Broccoli florets are sold in bags in the produce department. WW Freestyle SmartPoints 3-Blue WW SmartPoints 5-Green
1poundchicken breasts(boneless, skinless) cut into bite-size pieces
2cupsonionschopped
2cupsbroccoli florets
2cupszucchinichopped
1cupred bell pepperchopped
2tablespoonswater
1(10-12 ounce) bagshredded cabbageabout 5 cups
Ingredients for Sauce:
¼cupreduced-sodium soy sauce(use Tamari sauce for gluten-free)
2tablespoonsHoisin sauce(use a gluten-free brand for gluten-free)
2tablespoonsrice vinegar
1tablespoonsesame, canola or olive oil
1tablespoonbrown sugar
1dashred pepper flakes
Instructions
First prep all vegetables and dice the chicken. Set aside.
In a small bowl, add all sauce ingredients and mix until well blended. Be sure the brown sugar gets dissolved. Set aside.
Coat a large nonstick wok or pan with cooking spray. Add chicken and cook stirring often, until cooked through and white inside. Remove to a plate.
In the same pan, coat with more cooking spray and heat 1 tablespoon of oil. Add onions, broccoli, zucchini, red bell peppers, and water. Sauté over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes until broccoli is soft. Add cabbage and sauté another 2 minutes until cabbage is soft. Turn down to medium heat, add cooked chicken and sauce. Stir-fry for about 2 minutes until all heated through. Stir constantly to blend everything.
Lori, you can freeze this stir-fry. Enjoy!
My best,
Nancy
My family and I love this recipe! I have found that I can omit the brown sugar and it tastes great!
I’m so glad you all enjoyed it Maria! And thanks for sharing about leaving out the brown sugar and still liking it. Good to know!
All the best,
Nancy
Why can’t you print this?
I don’t know why you are having trouble printing this recipe. I just tried it on my computer and it printed fine. You could copy and paste the recipe in pages on a Mac or in word on a PC and print it out from there.
Best of luck,
Nancy
My family loved this! Made it exactly as you said to.
Oh good. Thanks for sharing this, Rose!
My very best,
Nancy
Can u freeze this
Lori, you can freeze this stir-fry. Enjoy!
My best,
Nancy
My family and I love this recipe! I have found that I can omit the brown sugar and it tastes great!
I’m so glad you all enjoyed it Maria! And thanks for sharing about leaving out the brown sugar and still liking it. Good to know!
All the best,
Nancy
Why can’t you print this?
I don’t know why you are having trouble printing this recipe. I just tried it on my computer and it printed fine. You could copy and paste the recipe in pages on a Mac or in word on a PC and print it out from there.
Best of luck,
Nancy
My family loved this! Made it exactly as you said to.
Oh good. Thanks for sharing this, Rose!
My very best,
Nancy