Ginger Chicken and Asparagus Stir-Fry
Get this simple and fast recipe for a delicious chicken and asparagus stir-fry seasoned with a delectable ginger and honey sauce.
I hate to be bossy but if you like meals that are:
a) fast
b) healthy
c) rockin’ with flavor
d) require only a skillet and a stovetop
Then you probably should be on your way to the store for ingredients to this ginger chicken and asparagus stir-fry right.this.second (and a million extra credit points to you if you already have asparagus and fresh ginger just hanging out in the fridge like it’s a normal thing to do).
Who knew a little honey, a little ginger and a lot of love (ok, that was corny, sorry) could combine into one of the best meals all summer.
I actually took the time to peel the lower third of the asparagus with a vegetable peeler, even after the really tough ends are trimmed off, which I hardly ever do because I’m lazy and I usually have about 3 1/2 kids hanging on my legs clamoring for attention and/or yogurt instead of dinner and my coping skills are especially low with no time to invest in peeling wee little asparagus ends, but let me tell you, it was the most tender asparagus (as in, goodbye stringy asparagus ends) we’ve ever had which puts me in a difficult position for the future: continue to be be lazy?
So, so, so, so tempting. Or…change my ways and peel the asparagus stalks forevermore?
This upcoming decision will probably be determined by the overall chaos and dirty dish level in my kitchen and any remaining sanity I have left as the dreaded dinner hour rolls forth. I’m not committing either way is what I’m saying.
No matter, because this meal is super duper stellar regardless. So make it, ok?
I love me a good stir-fry and this one is definitely leading the pack as a clear favorite right now.
So easy, so delicious, so makeable, it’s going to wheedle its way into your food loving heart, too. I just know it.
What to Serve With This
- *This is a pretty complete meal on its own so I usually keep the sides pretty simple*
- Fresh, seasonal fruit (grilled pineapple would be stellar) or Honey Lime Fruit Salad
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Ginger Chicken and Asparagus Stir-Fry
Ingredients
Stir Fry:
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil, can use vegetable or canola also, divided, meaning you’ll use one teaspoon first and the other 2 teaspoons later in the recipe
- 1 ½ – 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
- Salt and pepper
- 3 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed
- 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger (see note)
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 pound asparagus, tough ends trimmed, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 8 ounces white button or baby bella mushrooms, cleaned and quartered
- Hot, cooked rice or quinoa for serving
Sauce:
- ¾ cup low-sodium chicken broth
- ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
Instructions
- In a large, 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat one teaspoon of the oil over medium heat. Pat the chicken pieces dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook the chicken in a single layer in the hot skillet, flipping once or twice, until golden on each side, 2-3 minutes. Scrape the chicken to a plate and set aside (it will finish cooking in a next step).
- Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons oil in the skillet and add the garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring constantly, for about a minute until the mixture smells fragrant. Add the asparagus and mushrooms and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, for 4-5 minutes, until the asparagus is bright green and the mushrooms have started to brown and soften.
- Add the chicken and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
- Combine all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup and whisk into the skillet. Bring the mixture to a simmer for 2-3 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce is has thickened slightly.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately over rice or quinoa.
Notes
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Recipe Source: slightly adapted from Cooking Classy (decreased the cornstarch and oil, omitted the onion, increased the chicken just slightly)
Do you think this would taste good with cashews added? I’m wanting to make this tonight and thinking of adding cashews but I don’t want to ruin it!
Should be pretty yummy!
Very tasty! Fairly simple. Make sure you cut your asparagus before starting the chicken!!
Oh yum! This was fantastic and so fast and easy!
I almost always have fresh ginger on hand. I happened to have asparagus because I bought it to have for Easter dinner, and forgot to make it. Having a newborn makes my brain forget things. I was so glad to have found this recipe when I searched under asparagus! It was fabulous!
Oh. my. word. 10 stars. 100 stars. *SO* good, Mel! And that moment in step 2 with the ginger, garlic, and red pepper flakes becoming ‘fragrant’?… I have *never* had smells like that emanating from my kitchen before and it made me feel like a total chef. From rookie to rock-star one Mel-recipe at a time. 😉
Next time, I might add additional asparagus and mushrooms. (I loved the flavor enough that I would even consider making this with all vegetables.) I thought the meat ratio was high enough that I could stretch it further. Also, I’m a spice-wuss, so next time I’ll cut the red pepper flakes down to 1/4 tsp. For you readers that are familiar with Mel’s recipes, if the Crispy Chicken Wraps are too spicy for you (I use half of the hot sauce in that recipe), cut the red pepper flakes in half.
Love your detailed comment, Annie!
made with fresh green beans – loved it
This would be nice with tender baby bok choy too.
The picture doesn’t do it justice, but the sauce has so much flavor and it MAKES this dish!! Thanks, Mel!
I made this for dinner last night because I was searching and searching for a clean stir fry recipe that had normal ingredients. I told my friend about my issue and she said to make this one. It’s her favorite and it just became mine. My whole family loved it and my husband asked to make it a part of our rotation so thank you!! Delicious, healthy and CLEAN!! YAY!!
I make this all the time. My family loves it!
My family loves this meal! Last time I made it I realized that the asparagus and mushrooms (with the ginger, garlic, and crushed red pepper) would make a great side dish. I finally made it tonight. It was a perfect side for my homemade egg rolls!!
Such a delicious meal! Loved by the whole family. I made ours with broccoli and mushrooms. Perfect healthy, quick, satisfying meal-thanks for a great recipe.
Hey Mel, I have tried making this a couple times, but I can’t figure out why my sauce is so runny, almost watery, is it suppose to be like that??
No, it should thicken up and not be really runny – you might try adding an extra teaspoon of cornstarch and see if that helps.
Mine was watery too.
I’ve made this meal twice and it was amazing both times. I buy the 5lb bag of green beans at costco so I subbed those in. I also buy my mushrooms from costco, cut them up and freeze them in 8oz portions. This meal came together in minutes. I love it! The flavors are just perfect.
I made this but subbed green beans for asparagus because I had them around. Got rave reviews!
Made this for the first time tonight. So yummy! The sweetness was perfect.
Just made this and it was delicious! It was a tad spicy, but my husbands LOVES spicy food. This is going in the rotation!
I meant husband (only one!). Ha!
Not a mushroom fan so made with zucchini, was delish! Loved the sauce even though mine was thin.
Made this for supper tonight and it was fabulous! My picky ten year old gobbled it up!
Can’t wait to make this … and about a dozen other fun recipes that I’ve printed out in the past five minutes. That always happens when I get on your site! I came on looking for a barley side dish to make with your grilled pork chops, jumped over to the cheesy zucchini rice, found the brookies, and on and on and on. Thanks for doing a wonderful job!
Thanks, Kristin!
Made this last night and it was fantastic. It was so quick I was able to finish up putting together you classic chicken noodle soup for a weekend meal at the same time.
I made this 2 nights ago and it was a hit with the entire family and ridiculously quick and easy too. Last night, there was a fight about the leftovers. Total yum!
This looks SO DELICIOUS! And I am so hungry right now, which helps. Thank you so much for your awesome recipes. Keep it up!
Asian flavors rock my boat. I am totally into stir fries. In fact I had one for lunch today.
This is right up my alley. I pinned it.
Mel, this sounds delicious and easy! Thank you for another great recipe!
Despite the fact that I often use fresh ginger I never thought of freezing it so thanks for that tip! I received a ginger grater several months ago, the little ceramic kind. If you use fresh ginger more than once a year you need one of these! So quick and easy to use and cleanup, unlike mincing or using a box grater or Microplane, all of which I used to do. This is one of my favorite little gadgets! You’ll think I’m nuts for gushing about it until you try one. Thanks for all your work, my family is very grateful for your recipes!
What a fun post! I can relate to the inner debate – to peel or not to peel – have you ever done that to broccoli? I did. Once. Never again. It was indeed the best broccoli I ever had, but I never had the energy / frame of mind / to repeat the feat… 😉
this stir fry is a winner, no doubt!
The kids are gulping it down as I type. Yummy!!!
I love simple meals and I love your proposition <3
Thank you! This looks delicious! I love your recipes!
Thanks, just made it for lunch and it was a hit! Everything I make from your site always wins high praise. Todays praise…Thanks mom, I love when you make chinese.
Thanks for another easy weeknight meal recipe! I love a good stir-fry and this one looks flavorful and filling! It’s a great bonus to not have to worry about adding in a lot of side dishes, since the meat and veggies are already taken care of. 🙂
This is the trifecta…fast, healthy and tasty. Sign me up!
This looks fantastic! It’s everything I love and so simple. The only thing I might change is to dissolve the cornstarch in a little cold water first – I’ve found it makes things easier and no annoying clumps.
Just wanted to add that I made this and it was delicious! The only changes I made were to replace the mushrooms with onions, and omit the red pepper flakes for personal tastes. I served it over rice. The simple sauce with the fresh ginger works so well and the chicken comes out so juicy.
The proportions of chicken and veggies to sauce is also spot-on. Many recipes end up with too little or too much, but this was perfect. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Total hit. Not that zucchini is BAD- I like it – but you couldn’t really taste it over the great combination of taco-y flavors. Really made it a crowd pleaser. Also pretty simple- going into rotation.
Whoops, this is for the zucchini boats, LOL
Yum! I love me a good stir fry, too! I always freeze my ginger, but I peel it before freezing it. It is so much easier to grate it frozen then when it’s fresh!