Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Chicken Chop Suey
Chicken chop suey is a welcome plate when you want plenty of vegetables with your dinner. There is something satisfying about a forkful that catches tender chicken, a crisp stem and a little glossy sauce together. Sit down while it is hot and enjoy the variety.
- Prep
- 30 min
- Original yield
- Serves 6
- Ingredients
- 22 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Main course
- Primary protein
- Chicken
- Cooking method
- Stir fry
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 16–30 minutes
A few quick notes
1. Watch the marinating window
The velveting mixture stays with the chicken for the stated short window; the directions warn that a longer wait can make it mushy.
2. Keep bok choy parts separate
The stems go in with the first vegetables, while the leaves wait until the sauce and chicken return to the pan.
3. Whisk the sauce again
Recombine the waiting sauce before adding it to the skillet, then let it come to a simmer and thicken.
Get to know the ingredients
Thin chicken strips
Slice the chicken breasts into the listed quarter-inch strips before coating them in the velveting mixture for their brief marinade.
Bite-size broccoli
Prepare the broccoli as bite-size florets; it joins the onions and bok choy stems for the first vegetable stir-fry.
Bean sprouts wait until late
Keep the mung bean sprouts for the sauce stage, when they enter with the chicken and bok choy leaves.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 6. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 8 steps completeMake room for Chicken Chop Suey
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
Let the sauce thicken around everything
Bring the reunited chicken, vegetables and sauce to a simmer, and let the sauce thicken before serving the chop suey.
A little more help as you go
Prep vegetables ahead if helpful
Wash, peel and cut vegetables ahead, then refrigerate them separately with a paper towel to keep them crisp.
Keep advance chicken prep separate
Sliced chicken can be refrigerated up to two days ahead. Keep the whisked velveting ingredients separate until the short marinating stage.
A few questions you might have
Does the chicken cook completely during its first sear?
The initial sear leaves it about ninety percent cooked. It returns to the skillet with the sauce and final vegetables.
Do all the vegetables go in together?
They go in stages: the firmer first group, then carrots, peppers and corn, with leaves and sprouts added at the sauce stage.
Can I use rice vinegar instead of rice wine?
Don't use rice vinegar in place of rice wine. Use Shaoxing wine, Kikkoman Aji-Mirin: Sweet Cooking Rice Seasoning, or pale dry sherry instead.
When do I add the garlic and ginger?
Add them after the carrots, peppers and baby corn have had their brief stir-fry, just before the sauce goes in.
Can the stir-fry sauce be mixed ahead?
Yes. Refrigerate it in a sealed container, then stir again before adding it to recombine any cornstarch that has settled.
Any more cooking tips?
Rice wine : Use Shaoxing cooking wine, or I use “Kikkoman Aji-Mirin: Sweet Cooking Rice Seasoning” which is commonly found in the Asian section of most grocery stores, or you can purchase it on Amazon. I suggest you Google images before you head off to the grocery store so you know exactly what you are looking for. The best substitute is pale dry sherry. Do NOT substitute with rice vinegar; they are NOT the same. Meal Prep: This recipe can come together even more quickly by preparing some of the elements in advance: Chicken: Slice the chicken, then store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Whisk the velveting ingredients together and refrigerate, but keep the chicken separate. Vegetables: Wash, peel, and cut vegetables. Store in separate containers or bags in the fridge, with a paper towel to keep them crisp. Sauce: Whisk the stir-fry sauce ingredients together and keep in a sealed container in the fridge. Give it a quick stir before adding to the pan to recombine any settled cornstarch.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: carlsbadcravings.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.
