#314 Chicken & Kale Stir Fry for One, By: V

Most weeknights I want to head straight home after work and not have to pick-up or order-in take out.  I want to be able to whip up an easy hot meal and relax on the couch.  I mean, but really, don’t we all? 

Chicken Stir Fry can be a very easy and quick dish to prepare.  When I was in law school it was simple enough for me to whip up.  I would come back to my apartment after class and scrounge up any veggies from my freezer and refrigerator crisper, tossing them in a pan with a bit of olive oil and always adding in some sort of heat component – red chili flakes or Thai chili peppers. 

I’ve been on a big kale binge lately.  Throwing it into my morning green smoothies, salads, curries and stir-fry.  So, this week after work I came home and decided to make a quick kale and chicken stir fry.  The fridge was low on veggie, so kale became the major player of this stir-fry recipe. 

Prepping your ingredients before creating most dishes is such a helpful first step.  This is especially true for stir-fry recipes.  The cooking process is relatively quick and you don’t want your veggies over-cooked, so having everything by the side of the range, ready to pop into the wok or pan is really important, and a time saver.

You can even prep the night before if you have the time.  I washed my kale, cut the stems off and folded the leaves in half, before slicing them into ribbons.  I took the garlic clove and crushed it with the back of a knife, to easily remove the outer skin, before placing the clove in a garlic press and crushing the clove out into a delicious pile of fresh crushed and chopped garlic.  I took a piece of ginger root and peeled the outer skin with a vegetable peeler, or you can use a butter knife, then grated the ginger against a simple cheese grater.  The chicken was rinsed and cut into about 1 inch cubes.  

Chicken & Kale Stir Fry for One

Ingredients:

3 chicken tenderloins

1 garlic clove

2 tbsps olive oil 

1/2 tsp red chili flakes

1/2 tsp fresh grated ginger

2 cups chopped kale

1 tbsp stir fry sauce

1 tsp soy sauce

Directions:

1. In a skillet (wok or pan) add olive oil and red chili flakes to low heat.  Place garlic clove into a garlic press or chop up the garlic clove.  
2. Turn the heat up to medium and let the mixture splutter for 5 seconds.  Don't let the garlic brown. 
3. Add the chicken pieces and turn the heat to high  Cook on high until the chicken is no longer pink. 
4. Add the ginger and kale to the skillet. 
5. Stir everything together so the kale is coated with the oil.  
6. Then add the stir fry sauce (hoison sauce, oyster sauce, or any stir-fry sauce of your preference) and soy sauce.  Stir and cover with pot lid.  
7. Cook covered for 3 minutes.  Take the lid off, stir, and serve.  

I like heating the oil on low or medium-low with the garlic and red chili flakes, to allow the flavors from both ingredients to permeate the oil slowly and without burning the garlic.

This dish can be served over quinoa, cauliflower rice, brown rice, jasmine rice (or any rice of your choosing), noodles or for a low-carb option, in lettuce wraps.