Stir fried asparagus with chicken and walnuts

25.9.14 (Thurs)

Yesterday I went to the market and saw that the asparagus was on sale. The asparagus was very fresh and big, so I bought a packet and went home, searching for recipe. (It was  my very first time cooking asparagus!) Luckily, I found one easy recipe on Christine's recipe and Ta-Da, the dish turned out to be very yummy and I could really enjoy the crisp stems.

Ingredients:
60g walnuts
180g asparagus
150g chicken breast
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp Shaoxing wine (I didn't use this)
Salt, to taste

Marinade:
1 tsp light soy sauce
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp cornflour / corn starch
Sesame oil, to taste
White pepper, to taste

Seasonings:
2 tsp fish sauce (I didn't use this)
2 Tbsp chicken stock

Method:
1. Heat walnuts in a small pan without any oil over medium heat until aromatic. Remove from the heat. Let them cool down. Mix chicken with marinade. Set aside.

2. Heat oil in a wok or a frying pan. Cook the chicken over high medium heat until chicken turns white and cooked through. Set aside.

3. Blanch asparagus in boiling water for about 2 minutes. Drain well and immediately soak in cold water until cold to touch. Drain well again. Cut them into 3 to 4 sections.

 

4. Stir fry in the same pan with a little of oil. Add garlic and saute until aromatic. Season with salt and sprinkle wine. Quickly stir to combine well. Pour chicken stock and fish sauce. Cook further for another 2 minutes. Toss back the chicken and quickly combine well. Turn off the heat. Stir in the walnuts. Serve immediately.

Notes：
By soaking the blanched asparagus, you can keep its fresh green colour.

To get the best results, stir fry the thicker stems first, then add the thinner ones to cook together.