Chicken in Oyster & Spring Onion Stir fry... Where did I go wrong???

[CelticTiger]

Well, to-nights dinner attempt will go down as a Non event! I decided to take it handy this evening. I threw three diced free-range chicken breasts in olive oil on a hot electric wok, included 3 sliced cloves of Garlic, added 500g of Aldi Mushroom Stir Fry and topped that off with Oyster & Spring onion sachet (3 PP), left to cook on wok at Level 3 (out of 5) for about 25 mins. It got thumbs down from my youngest taste tester :-(
Only barely managed to salvage the dinner by adding Soy sauce which lifted it greatly. Where did it all go horribly wrong??? All and any suggestions gratefully received. This is my 2nd attempt at Stir fry, the first was a watery soggy mess. I suffered it to try and save some pride in front of my two sons, but it was dire!!!

HELP!!! :sigh:

 

[lilacwine]

I'm not completely sure where you've gone wrong as I'm not a big lover of stir fries so I don't cook them often, but I thought the idea of a stir fry was really quick cooking, so could it possibly be the 25 mins cooking with sauce. When I've done them before I would have done the same up to the point of your cooking for 25 mins. I would have put in the sauce, swished around until it's all hot, then it's out and on the plate. Maybe a stir fry expert would have more idea.

You have my sympathy though - it drives me nuts when I try new recipes and everyone turns up their nose!

 

[CelticTiger]

Thanks for that lilacwine, by the sounds of it I stewed the Dickens out of it! I have two fussy eaters in my household, teenagers that go to all kinds of lengths to avoid veggies at all cost. Part of this new venture is an exercise in getting veggies into them by their devious but well meaning Dad.

So far the stir frys have been grim, I can bluff my way with curries, so I will stick to my basics until I perfect the skills

Thanks again,

CT

 

[mommyB]

I use the pouches of sauces too and I think that the veg seem to absorb all the flavour. I have found it better to cook the meat seperately in the sauce, stir fry the veg then serve the meat and sauce on top-not a traditional method I grant you but it means you can taste it !!

If you are adding noodles you can cook these with the meat and flavouring too.

 

[CelticTiger]

Thanks for that suggestion mommyB. I might try that. Because without the Soy sauce, it was a bland affair this evening!

So how long would you fry off the chicken with the sauce?
How long would you stir-fry the veg, and at what temp, Low, Medium or High?

Thanks in advance,

CT

 

[skessa]

25 mins is way too long. The whole point of stir frys is to cook very quickly over a high heat

You need to cook the chicken first - making sure that it is completely cooked through. Then you need to add in the garlic, veges etc and crank up the heat to the highest, stiring and tossing constantly for a few minutes. The add the sauce a couple of minutes before the end. The sauce only needs to be warmed through. The vegetables should only take 5 mins maximum to cook.

 

[CelticTiger]

Well done Skessa, your advice is straight to the point and very clear. I will attempt a Chilli Stir Fry to-night and hopefully report progress.

Congrats on your spectacular weight loss! WWPP is certainly working for you.

 

[kelz89]

Like someone said above, cook the chicken first and then add the veg/sauce after and it wouldnt need anymore than five minutes. Sweet chilli stir fry sauce is my fav & chillis have a lot of weight loss benefits! x

 

[CelticTiger]

Hi kelz89, thanks for your contribution,much appreciated. Welcome back on your weight loss journey. Yum, I love garlic & chillies. Now that I've taken up cooking, I am trying to incorporate them into most dinners. Good for thinning the blood I believe and zapping the bad cholesterol