It’s spring in Chicago!  You know what that means?  Rain.  More rain, and more rain.  However, the temperatures start going up–today, we’re supposed to see an awesome 70º.  Don’t quote me on that, it may not happen.  To celebrate the warm weather (yes, 70º in the spring here is warm) I wore sandals to work.  And painted my toes–because my feet are gross when my toes are, *gasp* NAKED.

Enough about my feet.  The rain was the headliner for Chicago in April, as we had A LOT of it.  The rain apparently broke record amounts, and the Des Plaines River (which I grew up near) was the highest it’s been in many many years.

Unfortunately, I didn’t experiment much in April, and I generally have problems with Asian foods.  I look at the sauce, and think it needs to be thicker–then end up making it much to thick; or I decide to leave it alone, and it comes back too runny.  This recipe, though, adapted from Rainy Day Gal’s blog is absolute heaven.  It’s delicious with both beef and chicken, I just prefer chicken with it.

Chicken and Broccoli Stirfry

adapted from Rainy Day Gal

Ingredients

For the Marinade:

• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 Tbs cornstarch
• 1 Tbs soy sauce
• 1 Tbs water
• 2 Tbs vegetable oil
• 3-4 chicken breast halves, cut into 1″ chunks

For the Stirfry Sauce:

• 1/2 c soy sauce
• 2 Tbs brown sugar
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbs flour
• 1 Tbs Sherry
• 3 Tbs vegetable oil
• 2 heads broccoli, crowns only

Directions

For the Marinade, combine all the marinade ingredients, put in a bowl and set aside.  Let the chicken marinade for a good half an hour.  While it’s sitting, you can prep the stirfry sauce and get the broccoli done!

For the sauce, combine all ingredients except the broccoli, set aside.

In a large pan, add a tablespoon or two of vegetable oil, and get the pan hot.  Add the broccoli and saute for a few minutes until the broccoli has a bright green color, and still crunchy. 

Once the broccoli is done cooking, set it aside in a bowl or plate.

Add a little more vegetable oil (more if the non-stick in your pan isn’t as fantastic as it used to be) and add the chicken, plus half the stirfry sauce.  Cook until the chicken is cooked through.

Toss the broccoli back into the pan, and pour remaining stirfry sauce over it.  Stir to combine.  Turn heat down to low, put the lid on, and let it cook a few minutes more.  Stir once more before serving.  Doesn’t that look delicious?!

I served mine over white rice, and it was heavenly.  Enjoy!