Loaded with veggies and a delicious teriyaki-style sauce, this chicken stir fry is the yummiest clean-out-the-fridge meal ever. It’s so well-balanced, veggie-loaded, and really, really delicious. Serve it over a bed of rice for a heartier, more filling option, or serve it as is if you’re looking for a lower-carb, lighter option — either way, it’s a home run!
Table of Contents
This recipe is…
Ingredients Needed
The ingredients listed here are pretty standard, but know that tons of swaps and substitutions can be made if needed (see “Ingredient Modifications”) for ideas! Here’s everything you’ll need:
- Sesame Oil – to start, you’ll need 2 tablespoons of sesame oil. Though you could absolutely use olive or avocado oil, the sesame oil brings a really delicious flavor to the stir fry.
- Chicken Breasts – as far as protein goes, you’ll need 2 large chicken breasts (about 1 pound total) cut into ½-1 inch cubes for this recipe.
- Broccoli – 1 bunch of broccoli chopped into florets heads in as the first veggie component.
- Carrots – 4 carrots sliced into rounds head into the stir fry also.
- Bell Pepper – as another great veggie add, 1 chopped red bell pepper heads into the skillet!
- Soy Sauce – a ¼ cup of soy sauce (or tamari for GF) brings a lot of flavor to the stir fry!
- Honey – to counter the saltiness of the soy sauce, you’ll also want to add 2 tablespoons of honey to the skillet.
- Fish Sauce – a ¼ teaspoon of fish sauce heads into the skillet for some extra umami.
- Seasonings – to further season the stir fry you’ll need a ½ teaspoon of garlic powder, a ½ teaspoon of ginger powder, and a ¼ teaspoon of red pepper flakes, optional (could be added as a garnish for less spice).
- Rice – serve your stir fry over white rice, if desired!
- Sesame Seeds – as an extra garnish, sprinkle with sesame seeds!
Ingredient Modifications
- Make it gluten-free: use tamari instead of soy sauce to make this dish GF.
- Skip the fish sauce: if you’re out of fish sauce (or just don’t care for it), feel free to either reduce the amount or omit it altogether.
- Use any veggie you have: this is a bonafide “clean out your fridge” meal, so if you’ve got veggies hanging out in the fridge, just waiting to be used, toss them in the skillet too! Red onion, snap peas, any color of bell pepper, green onions, and mushrooms would all be really delicious adds.
- Use store-bought teriyaki sauce: omit the soy sauce, honey, fish sauce, and seasonings and use a store-bought teriyaki sauce instead!
- Use a different cut of chicken: if you prefer chicken thighs over chicken breasts, use those! Chicken tenders would also work great here.
- Use ghee, EVOO, or avocado oil: if you’re out of sesame oil, use ghee, olive oil, or avocado oil instead.
How to Make Chicken Stir Fry
The process is super simple (and all done in one pan!). Here’s how you’ll do it:
- Cook the veggies – add the oil to a hot skillet over medium-high heat, then add the veggies, and cover and cook for 3-5 minutes, tossing occasionally.
- Add the chicken, soy sauce, fish sauce, and seasoning – add the cubed chicken, soy sauce, honey, fish sauce, garlic powder, ginger powder, and red pepper flakes to the skillet and toss to combine.
- Cover and cook – cover and let the stir fry cook over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes, tossing every 3-4 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.
- Garnish and serve – serve over rice, garnish with sesame seeds, and enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Because we’re all different, the secret to a really good stir fry is making it your own! The easiest way to do this is to taste the sauce before taking it off the heat — that way, you’ve got time to adjust any missing flavors as needed. If it needs more salt, add more soy sauce or tamari! If it needs a tinge more sweetness, add some extra honey. If an extra kick of spice is the missing link, add some extra red pepper flakes (or chili garlic paste!) to the skillet.
Absolutely! This is a real “clean out your fridge” kind of meal, so any veggie that’s hanging out in the fridge will work great. Thinly sliced red onion, snap peas, bell peppers (any color), green onions, and mushrooms would all be really delicious here.
Cassy opted for a homemade teriyaki-style sauce using soy sauce, honey, fish sauce, garlic powder, ginger powder, and red pepper flakes. If you’re looking to keep things even simpler than this, a store-bought teriyaki sauce would be delicious too!
The veggies head into the skillet 3-5 minutes before the chicken — this will allow them to get nice and soft without completely overcooking the chicken!
Nope! The veggies get tossed into the skillet first to give them a head start on softening and cooking to tender perfection. Once they’ve cooked for 3-5 minutes, the chicken will be tossed in!
If your chicken ends up rubbery, it’s likely because it’s been overcooked. To avoid this, try not to let your chicken hang out in the skillet for more than 10-15 minutes — after this amount of time, the chicken should be completely cooked through.
I personally love to serve a stir fry like this over a bed of white rice (as pictured). Once paired with rice, the stir fry is completely balanced (healthy fats, protein, a good amount of veggies, and energizing carbohydrates), so I don’t feel a need to serve it alongside anything else!
More Favorite Chicken Recipes
Easy Chicken Stir Fry
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 bunch broccoli chopped into florets
- 4 carrots sliced into rounds
- 1 red bell pepper chopped
- 2 large chicken breasts about 1 pound, chopped into ½-1 inch cubes
- ¼ cup soy sauce use tamari for GF
- 2 tablespoons honey
- ¼ teaspoon fish sauce optional
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ginger powder
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes optional (could be added as a garnish for less spice)
- white rice for serving
- white sesame seeds for serving
Instructions
- Add the sesame oil to a hot skillet over medium-high heat, then add the broccoli, carrots, and red bell pepper, and cover to cook for 3-5 minutes, tossing occasionally.
- Add the cubed chicken, soy sauce, honey, fish sauce, garlic powder, ginger powder, and red pepper flakes to the skillet and toss to combine.
- Cover and let the stir fry cook over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes, tossing every 3-4 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.
- Serve over rice, garnish with sesame seeds, and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- Make it gluten-free: use tamari instead of soy sauce to make this dish GF.
- Skip the fish sauce: if you’re out of fish sauce (or just don’t care for it), feel free to either reduce the amount or omit it altogether.
- Use any veggie you have: this is a bonafide “clean out your fridge” meal, so if you’ve got veggies hanging out in the fridge, just waiting to be used, toss them in the skillet too! Red onion, snap peas, any color of bell pepper, green onions, and mushrooms would all be really delicious adds.
- Use store-bought teriyaki sauce: omit the soy sauce, honey, fish sauce, and seasonings and use a store-bought teriyaki sauce instead!
- Use a different cut of chicken: if you prefer chicken thighs over chicken breasts, use those! Chicken tenders would also work great here.
- Use ghee, EVOO, or avocado oil: if you’re out of sesame oil, use ghee, olive oil, or avocado oil instead.
Nutrition
I can’t find either the servings/ serving size or the nutrition facts.
Hi Jill! We are sorry about that. Not all of the recipe cards on our new site have nutrition facts updated just yet. We are working through adding them to each article. In the meantime, NutriFox offers a free trial if you are looking for specific information. This recipe as written serves 4. -Team FF
this was tasteless. I will never use this recipe again
We’re so sorry to hear you did not enjoy this recipe, Sharon.
Can I use frozen stir fry veggies?
Hi Anna! You can definitely substitute frozen veggies in this recipe. It’s best to add them straight to the skillet from the freezer to get the best texture (so they don’t get soggy sitting out), just be careful adding them to the hot oil! ~Melissa