Stir-Fried Hot and Sour Chicken with Black Beans and Basil

Name: Stir-Fried Hot and Sour Chicken with Black Beans and Basil
Yield: Serves 2 to 3 as a main course, 4 to 5 as part of a multicourse meal
Cuisine: China
Ingredients: 1½ teaspoons dried red chili flakes; 2½ to 3 tablespoons corn or peanut oil, for stir-frying; 1 pound skinless, boneless fresh chicken breasts (2 pounds with skin and bone), cut into 1-inch cubes; ½ teaspoon kosher salt; ¼ to ⅓ cup coarsely chopped purple or green basil (leaves left whole if small); 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry; 2 tablespoons juice from China Moon Pickled Ginger; 1½ teaspoons sugar; 1½ tablespoons finely minced garlic; 6 to 8 ounces baby squash, halved lengthwise if large, or small zucchini, cut into ¼-inch coins; 1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in 1½ tablespoons cold chicken stock or water; 2 cups Napa cabbage squares (1 inch); 2 fat scallions, cut into 1-inch nuggets; 1 cup domestic white or brown (crimini) mushrooms, halved or quartered if large; 1⅓ cups China Moon Infusion, China Moon Double Stock, or unsalted chicken stock; 1 red (bell) pepper, cut into ¾-inch squares; 1 small carrot, cut diagonally into rippled or plain coins ⅛ inch thick; 1 tablespoon cornstarch; 2 teaspoons chopped Chinese black beans, for garnish; Diagonally cut green and white scallion rings, for garnish; 1 teaspoon kosher salt; 1½ teaspoons coarsely chopped Chinese black beans (do not rinse them); 8 to 12 ears fresh baby corn, halved lengthwise if large, or ½ cup fresh corn kernels; 1 small yellow onion, cut into ¾-inch squares; 1 tablespoon finely minced fresh ginger; 1 large egg white

Preparation info

Serves
2 to 3
as a main course

Difficulty
Complex

Appears in

China Moon Cookbook

By Barbara Tropp

Published 1992

About

One of the pleasures of cooking in a restaurant with its assorted cooks and the pressure to always create new dishes—or new twists on old ones—is the frequent discovery of “new” ingredients. Fresh basil was never part of my kitchen until one of my sous-chefs suggested its flavor might go well with Chinese black beans. Indeed it does, and nowhere with greater success than in this otherwise very traditional, country-style Chinese dish.

This is a great one-dish supper. The preparation

Ingredients

Asia
China
Dinner
Spicy

Ingredients

Method