Mushroom Chicken and Rice Stir Fry

Enjoy this delicious recipe for chicken and mushroom stir fry with rice, perfect for your qi deficiency body constitution.

The story behind this qi deficiency recipe

When I was first learning to cook, stir frying was one of the first techniques I mastered. I think part of the reason was that I could prepare everything early and then not have to turn on the stove until my parents were home to supervise. After all, once the meat hits the pan, you’re only about 15 minutes from eating. And you can experiment with a wide array of ingredients and flavors. Even today, when I’m cleaning out the fridge, I’ll usually drizzle everything with soy sauce, throw it into a pan, and serve it on rice.

I grew up near mushroom country and there were certain parts of town in which everyone drove with their windows rolled up so as not to get hit with scent of mushroom soil. This convinced me that I didn’t like mushrooms because if the soil stunk, the vegetable had to taste similar, right?

Actually, absolutely wrong. Mushrooms have a delicate, earthy taste and cooking mushrooms, rather than eating them raw, deepens their flavor and gives them a taste unlike anything else. You will enjoy the deep mushroom flavor in this chicken and mushroom stir fry with rice recipe.

Chicken and Mushroom Stir Fry with Rice

Ingredients

Rice:
1 c. brown rice
2 c. water
½ tsp. salt

Marinade:
2 chicken breasts (about 1 lb.)
2 tbsp. soy sauce

Stir Fry:
2 tbsp. sesame oil
¼ c. soy sauce
2 tbsp. rice vinegar
1 tsp. dried ginger
½ tsp. honey
3 carrots
½ lb. mushrooms
½ c. peanuts

Directions for Chicken and Mushroom Stir Fry

1. The day before (or at least a few hours before), dice the chicken breast and then place in a large freezer bag. Wash your hands, then add in the soy sauce and smoosh it around the sauce coats the chicken. Leave it in the fridge to chill until you start cooking the rice. You want the chicken to be about room temperature by the time you start cooking.
2. Rinse the rice in a fine-mesh strainer, then put into a saucepan with water and salt.
   
3. Bring rice to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover for about 45 minutes. Take off the heat and keep covered and let stand for 10-15 minutes. When you take the rice off the heat, you can start preparing the stir fry.
   
4. Stir together the soy sauce, rice vinegar, and honey in a small dish.
   
5. Dice the carrots and slice the mushrooms.
   
6. Heat the sesame oil in a sauté pan (or wok) over medium high heat.
   
7. Add chicken to the pan and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring quickly until you don’t see any pink, and then remove.
   
8. Add carrots to the still hot pan – if it’s dry, add more oil. Drizzle about a ½ of the sauce on the carrots. Cook for about 3-5 minutes. Stir rapidly so nothing sticks to the pan.
   
9. Add mushrooms and cook for another 4-6 minutes or so, until water is evaporated.
   
10. Return the cooked chicken to the pan and add the rest of the sauce.
    
11. Serve chicken on a bed of rice and garnish with peanuts.