Home » Recipes » Meal Type » Dinner » 6-Ingredient Chinese Chicken: Easy Chinese Chicken Recipes for Dinner with Few Ingredients
Dinner
Published: January 25, 2024
This chicken will be on your plate faster than your delivery guy can make it to your front door.
It’s after 6pm. You’re struggling through rush hour, trying to make it home in time to fit in a workout, throw in a load of laundry, and maybe watch the latest episode of Scandal. How can you possibly be expected to cook dinner, too? You sigh, envisioning another evening rifling through the stack of takeout menus in your drawer, choosing a heavy, greasy, sodium-filled meal made with ingredients you don’t entirely recognize. It may taste good at first, but after the first few bites, you’ll be feeling weighed down and just a bit guilty.
But your evening doesn’t have to go down that road! At Skinny Ms., we’re happy to provide our readers with healthy, clean eating versions of their favorite takeout entrees. Our 6-Ingredient Chinese Chicken is one of our favorite easy Chinese chicken recipes for dinner with few ingredients. It’s a cinch to shop for and prepare. It’s a perfect weeknight dinner, even on those nights when your schedule feels hectic.
How do we make easy Chinese chicken recipes for dinner with few ingredients taste so good? Our marinade is so packed with flavor—it only needs 20 minutes in the fridge to flavor your chicken. Mix together light soy sauce, hoisin sauce, chili sauce, and minced ginger, coat your chicken, and let sit while you look through the mail or water your plants. Your lean, protein-rich chicken breasts only need a few minutes of cooking, and then you can add them to any whole grain you like for a complete and satisfying meal. We like to add a side of bok choy or broccoli for an extra dose of green!
6-Ingredient Chinese Chicken
This chicken dish is a perfect substitute for those unhealthy takeout options and with very few ingredients, dinner will be served in no time.
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Prep Time 25 minutes minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes minutes
Total Time 35 minutes minutes
Yield 4 people
Serving Size 0.75 cup
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Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 tablespoon ginger peeled and minced (about 1 inch ginger root)
- 1 tablespoon garlic chili sauce or chili paste
- 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon lite soy sauce
Chicken
- 1 pound boneless and skinless chicken breasts sliced horizontally and then into small cubes
- 1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
Instructions
Whisk together the marinade. Put the chicken pieces in a bowl and toss well to coat evenly with marinade. Cover and place in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
Add canola oil to a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot and shimmering (but not smoking) add the chicken pieces. Cook the chicken for 3- 5 minutes until cooked through and the juices run clear. If the chicken pieces are larger, cook longer.
Serve over brown rice, brown rice noodles, or quinoa. Garnish with chopped cilantro or chopped scallions, if desired.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 0.75cup | Calories: 190kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 255mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g |
SmartPoints (Freestyle): 4
Keywords Budget-Friendly, Diabetic-Friendly, Low-Carb, Paleo
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We love to make easy Chinese chicken recipes for dinner with few ingredients—they’re quick, healthy, and super satisfying—even when our strongest takeout cravings strike. The best thing about this 6-ingredient Chinese chicken recipe is that it’s easy to keep all of its ingredients stocked so that you’ll always have them on hand for busy weeknight dinners.
Enjoyed this post? Check out more:
- Easy 6-Ingredient Sesame Chicken
- 6-Ingredient Caprese Pasta Salad
- 6-Ingredient Greek Pasta Salad
- 6-Ingredient Mediterranean Salad
- Healthy Orange Chicken Crockpot Recipe
Make sure that you subscribe to our newsletter, so that you don’t miss out on anything Skinny Ms. For more tasty recipes, healthy lifestyle tips, and whole- body workouts, check out our Facebook page and follow us on Pinterest.
What are your favorite easy Chinese chicken recipes for dinner with few ingredients? We’d love to hear what you think of this post, or what you’d like to see on our site. Leave us a comment in the comments section below.
FAQs
General Tso's chicken is a popular Chinese menu pick, recognized for its glossy coating and sweet and somewhat spicy flavors. This recipe is so easy and simple to make with no complicated steps or ingredients!
What makes Chinese chicken tender? ›
Chinese stir-fried chicken is extra tender due to the velveting technique. Chicken is sliced into thin, even-sized pieces and then marinated briefly in a mix of baking soda, cornstarch, wine, and seasoning. This seals in moisture and tenderizes the chicken.
What is sweet and sour chicken made of Chinese food? ›
Sweet and sour chicken, one of the most popular Chinese takeout dishes, is made of puffy, golden brown pieces of fried chicken nuggets with pineapple chunks, onion, bell pepper, carrot, and a side of iconic red, sweet and sour sauce.
What is Chinese Empire chicken? ›
Imperial Chicken is typically prepared by poaching a whole chicken in a flavorful broth infused with Chinese herbs and spices. After cooking, the chicken is deboned and cut into bite-sized pieces. It is then served cold or at room temperature, often garnished with fresh herbs and accompanied by a dipping sauce.
What is China's number one dish? ›
1. Kung Pao Chicken. There aren't many Chinese dishes that are more popular than Kung Pai Chicken. The classic dish originates from southwestern China, specifically Sichuan cuisine, and is associated with general Chinese food and cuisine.
What is America's favorite Chinese dish? ›
Popular Chinese Dishes. General Tso Chicken – According to Grubhub, this sweet fried chicken dish is the most popular Chinese food in America. It's also unhealthy, considering that it is deep-fried and the recipe demands tons of sugar.
What do Chinese soak their chicken in? ›
Velveting meat is a Chinese cooking technique used in Chinese restaurants. The process of velveting is one where you marinate raw meat in cornstarch and egg white or bicarbonate of soda to give it a soft, slippery, velvety texture.
What do Chinese put on meat to make it tender? ›
While there are several ways to velvet, a pound of meat needs about two teaspoons of cornstarch and two teaspoons of oil, says Leung. You may also include two to three tablespoons of water. For beef, add a 1/4-teaspoon of baking soda for tenderizing. Additional seasonings are optional and vary from recipe to recipe.
What is the best ingredient to tenderize chicken? ›
Make a plain yogurt or buttermilk marinade.
Yogurt and buttermilk contain enzymes and acids that work together to break down the proteins in chicken, causing it to be more tender.
What is Chinese sweet and sour sauce made of? ›
In a medium saucepan, combine pineapple juice, rice vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup, and soy sauce and bring to a boil over medium heat. Stir in cornstarch slurry and cook until thickened, about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and use immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
General Tso's chicken is a spicy and tangy dish made with a mix of chicken breast and thighs, while sesame chicken is a sweeter option made with succulent chicken thighs. Whether you're in the mood for something spicy or sweet, both dishes offer a delicious and crispy meal that's sure to satisfy your cravings.”
Do the Chinese eat sweet and sour sauce? ›
Many places in China use a sweet and sour sauce as a dipping sauce for fish and meat rather than in cooking, as is common in Westernized Chinese cuisine.
Why is it called beggar's chicken? ›
Beggar's Chicken used to be a dish for the poor. Legend has it that the dish was invented when a beggar stole a chicken. Because he had no pot to cook it in, the beggar supposedly wrapped the chicken in lotus leaves and packed it in mud before lighting a fire in the ground and burying it.
What is the white Chinese chicken called? ›
White cut chicken or white sliced chicken (traditional Chinese: 白切雞; simplified Chinese: 白切鸡) is a type of siu mei. Unlike most other meats in the siu mei category, this particular dish is not roasted, but steamed. The dish is common to the cultures of Southern China, including Guangdong, Fujian and Hong Kong.
Is General Tso's chicken the same as Empress Chicken? ›
Empress Chicken vs General Tso – General Tso Chicken has a darker, soy-based sauce and is spicier than Empress Chicken. Empress Chicken vs Sesame Chicken – Sesame chicken has sesame oil and seeds, no chilies, and is sweeter than Empress Chicken.
What are the 3 most popular dishes in China? ›
The Top 5 Most Popular Dishes In China
- Ma Po Tofu is a major staple dish in Chinese meals. ...
- Hot Pot is the go-to dish to share on cold evenings with friends and family. ...
- Peking Duck is one of the most popular dishes served for special occasions in China.
What is the difference between orange chicken and General Tso? Orange chicken is crispy fried with a fruity, sweet, and tangy sauce that's caramelized into a glaze. General Tso is stir-fried in a sweet, sour, and spicy umami sauce.
Is General Tso Chicken popular in China? ›
You might be surprised to learn that General Tso's chicken, a staple on Chinese-American menus, is almost entirely foreign to people who live in the country from which it supposedly originated. While the dish isn't exactly authentic Chinese food, its namesake was a very real (and very powerful) general.
