Hello! Hi everyone, Wesley here. Today we're diving back into our series dedicated to classic Americanized Chinese cuisine with a look at a highly requested classic Chinese stir fry staple known as "moo goo gai pan." For those new to the channel, in this series, we have been deconstructing classic dishes from Americanized Chinese cuisine, then seeing what they might look like when reconstructed through the lens of more traditional wok cooking. Moo Goo Gai Pan is an Americanization of a Cantonese stir fry staple found on Chinese takeout menus across the country, which loosely translates to "sliced mushroom and chicken." 

The American version of moo goo gai pan is a pretty straightforward veggie stir fry containing button mushrooms, carrots, water chestnuts, snow peas, and of course, chicken, all sliced into thin pieces and sauteed in oyster sauce. Full disclosure, I am Chinese, but I don't think I've ever actually eaten the American version of this dish before, mostly because it is wildly different from the Cantonese dish that it was adapted from, which (amongst a few different qualities), specifically does not contain soy sauce, yielding a lighter and brighter quality to the stir fry. This of course makes for the perfect opportunity to two different versions of this dish so that we may compare results and take a look at what the are the American qualities of this dish, and how the two differ. Hope you try it. Hope you try it. 

 

Serves 2-3

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 cloves garlic

  • 1 inch (about 1 tbsp) ginger

  • 3 green onions

  • 4 shiitake mushrooms

  • 4 oz water chestnuts

  • 4 oz baby bok choy

  • 1 medium chicken breast

  • corn starch slurry (2 tbsp corn starch dissolved in water)

  • baking soda slurry (1/2 tsp baking soda dissolved in water)

  • peanut oil

INGREDIENTS (marinade)

  • 1 tbsp shaoxing wine

  • 1 tbsp sesame oil

  • 1/2 tsp white pepper

INGREDIENTS (sauce)

  • 1 tbsp shaoxing wine

  • 1 tbsp sesame oil

  • 2 tbsp oyster sauce

  • 1/4 cup chicken stock

PREP

  • PEEL and slice the garlic, set aside

  • PEEL and slice the ginger, set aside

  • SLICE the whites of the green onions, set aside

  • SLICE the greens of the green onions into planks, set aside

  • REHYDRATE the shiitake mushrooms in boiling water, then slice into halves and set aside

  • PEEL and slice the carrot, set aside

  • SLICE the bok choy into quarters, set aside

  • COMBINE all sauce ingredients, set aside

  • SLICE the chicken breast into thin pieces, then combine with baking soda slurry and set aside for 15 minutes

  • RINSE the chicken in cold water, then combine with all marinade ingredients and let marinate for 30 minutes

ON THE STOVE

  • HEAT a wok over mdium heat, then add 4 tbsp peanut oil and long yao

  • ADD the chicken to the wok, holding back as much liquid as possible, then spread evenly across the wok surface and sear undisturbed for 2 minutes

  • RAISE the heat to high, then toss the chicken with the wok tilted downward toward the open flame for wok hei, then remove and set aside

  • REHEAT the wok over high heat, add 4 tbsp peanut oil and long yao

  • ADD the garlic, ginger and whites of green onions and saute for 15 seconds until fragrant

  • ADD the bok choy and water chestnuts, then saute for 1-2 minutes

  • ADD the shiitake mushrooms, greens of green onions, and chicken back to the wok, then toss for 1-2 minutes

  • ADD the sauce mixture plus corn starch slurry, then toss to thicken the sauce

 

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