Monday, November 07, 2011

Stir Fried Chicken Breast with Chayote (佛手瓜炒鸡胸肉)


I first read about chayote at Tigerfish's blog in 2009.  Since then, she had been cooking up a few dishes with chayote.  I saw chayote in the Asian market often but I just didn't pick it up because it was unfamiliar to me.  Also, I was afraid that my family would not like it.  Finally, almost 2 years since I last learned about it, I decided to pick it up at my last Asian market's shopping.


Chayote also known as 佛手瓜 (Buddha hand melon) or 合掌瓜 (closed palm melon) in Mandarin and can be eaten raw or cooked.  The fruit has very mild flavor and it has a crisp and crunchy bite to it.  It doesn't have to be peeled, just wash it clean with water, cut into half and scoop out the seeds.  Then, thinly sliced it for salad or just slice it however you want for the dish that you are intended to cook.  Chayote is rich in amino acids and vitamin C and have diuretic, cardiovascular and anti-inflammatory properties.  It is also very affordable.  It only cost me about 38 cent each.



Ingredients:

1 skinless and boneless chicken breast (Thinly slice and marinate it with iodized salt, white pepper, ShaoXing cooking wine and 1 tsp. of cornstarch)
1 chayote (washed, seeded, cut into quarter and then thinly slice it)
1 carrot, thinly slice
1 heap tsp. LKK Chu Hou sauce (柱侯酱)
1/2 tsp. cane sugar
A little iodized salt (if you like saltier food, I'm a low-sodium cook, so I don't bother with adding more salt)


Method:

1.  Heat up your wok, when heated, add in some cooking oil of your choice.  When warm, add in the marinated chicken breast slices.  Stir-fry until cooked, dish out and set on a plate.

2.  In the same wok, add a little more oil (if needed), when hot, add in chayote, stir-fry well.  Add in carrot and stir-fry well.

3.  Add in the chicken and mix well.  Add the chu hou paste, mix and stir-fry well.  Add the sugar, mix well.  You can add a little salt if you like.  Dish out and serve hot!


13 comments:

Juliana said...

We used to eat lots of chayote back in Brazil...but never stir fried with chicken...looks delicious how you prepared it. I will have to give this a try.
Hope you have a nice week Ching and thanks for this recipe :-)

daphne said...

Simple but oh so versatile hey. I have not used chayote before but it does look really easy to use.

Sonia ~ Nasi Lemak Lover said...

remind me long time did not cook dish with Chayote, usually i stir fry with beef slices, next time must try with chicken. Thanks for sharing.

Nava K said...

At first I got wondering what is chayote but after looking at the pic, then I realised that its melon.

These are so cheap over at my place and I do prepare like your lovely recipe with all the Asian ingredients and touch. Yummy with rice.

Belinda @zomppa said...

Never cooked it myself, but am inspired!

tigerfish said...

I hope you and your family enjoyed it. Did you all? Did you leave the skin on? I would usually peel it. If you want the chayote to be tender and softer, you can add them in soups or stews and allow them to simmer. :)

Christina Kim said...

I've heard of this melon/chayote, but to be honest, I've never tried it myself :p
Your dish is just so homey, makes me miss my mummy's cooking now :)

iva | in my kitchen said...

i learnt something new! and that looks delicious. we love anything chicken stir fried :)

Little Corner of Mine said...

You're welcome Juliana, hope you like it! :)

Daphne, it's really easy and I recommend it!

You're welcome Sonia. As you know, I don't buy beef. :P

Nava, is it a melon? I thought it's a squash, some called it chayote squash?

Inspired is great Belinda. :P Seriously I would recommend chayote, I have another healthier and easy chayote recipe coming out that's seriously good.

Thanks Tigerfish, yeah my family like it. I like it crisp not soft. :)

Thanks Christy. Haha...homey is the right word since you probably won't see this in a restaurant as I created most of the recipes myself here in a U.S. kitchen. :P

Thanks Iva, hope you try it!

Torviewtoronto said...

this looks delicious

Noob Cook said...

I like your way of slicing the chayote. It's also a recent discovery for me, love the fact that it is still crisp after stir-frying.

Indonesia Eats said...

I like eaten raw chayote rather than steamed or boiled one. Just had chayote for gado-gado the other day.

Babe_KL said...

I always julienne my chayote and never cooked them sliced like your way. Maybe I should try too.