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Home > Meal Type > Main Dishes > Takeout Style Chicken and Snow Peas

Takeout Style Chicken and Snow Peas

Updated: Nov 2nd 2019 • Published: Nov 28th 2018 • 7 Comments

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Pinterest image with text at the top and a close up of the chicken and snow pea stir fry at the bottom

With this Takeout Style Chicken and Snow Peas stir fry, you can have a healthy Asian chicken dinner on the table in no time. Making Chinese takeout recipes at home, is much easier than you think! They are perfect for families as they are quick and there are plenty of veggies included, plus the wonderful Chinese savory sauce adds the authentic takeout taste BUT this Chicken and Snow Peas is better than takeout!

Deep white plate with stir fried chicken and snow peas in it

We all love a takeout: no cooking, less washing up, the delicious food…..I could go on, but the one think I don’t enjoy is the cost. Getting takeout for the family quickly mounts up. So making takeout style food at home is a great option. (Just get someone else to wash up problem solved 😉 )

With a few tips and tricks you can have authentic tasting Chinese at home!

Jump Menu

  • A few top tips for takeout at home:
  • Where to buy the Asian store cupboard staples?
  • How to tenderise chicken for takeout style meals
  • Snow Peas
  • Can you reheat stir fry?
  • What to serve with Chicken and Snow Peas
  • Takeout Style Chicken and Snow Peas

A few top tips for takeout at home:

  • You don’t need a wok! In fact I recommend a heavy based skillet. Because most standard household stove tops don’t come with a wok burner, you find that a wok doesn’t get as hot as it would in a commercial kitchen. So using a skillet or fry pan is one way to get a higher heat for your stir fry. You can read more about this in my Takeout Style Beef and Broccoli post.
  • Use the highest heat you can. Because we want to recreate the takeout taste we want to cook the meat and veg as quickly as we can to keep the fresh flavor and the authentic crunch you get with takeout.
  • Have everything prepped before you start cooking. Stir frying is quick cooking so you want to have the veggies and meat prepped, the sauce combined and the garlic sliced. That way once you start cooking you can just add things in when you need to, rather than overcooking bits because you were still chopping the next ingredient.
  • Buy a few Asian store cupboard staples. To get the true authentic taste of takeout you want to use several ingredients that really boost the flavor. In this recipe it is oyster sauce and Chinese Cooking Wine. They give you authentic flavor and last for ages so you will get your moneys worth.

Where to buy the Asian store cupboard staples?

I have found that the grocery stores are getting better and better at stocking these ingredients.

Walmart has both oyster sauce and Chinese cooking rice wine on its shelves. You can also find plenty of variety on Amazon at a slightly cheaper price, but you do need to be organised 😉

Overhead shot of chicken and snow peas in a white bowl on a beige table with a blue napkin and black chopsticks

Whenever I order takeout one of my favourite things is how soft and tender the meat is. Whether it is chicken or beef it is always melt in the mouth tender.

I learnt a trick from a Chinese night cook when I was working in a hotel and it is possibly the BEST kitchen hack I have ever learnt. It is so easy and gives you that authentic soft tender meat.

How to tenderise chicken for takeout style meals

The trick is baking soda. Also known as bicarb of soda, bicarbonate of soda and sodium bicarbonate. Don’t get it muddled with baking powder, that won’t tenderise you meat.

The baking soda is sprinkled over the meat and left for 15 minutes. Then it is rinsed off really well and the resulting meat will be so tender.

here comes the science…..

This process works because the baking soda is an alkali (the opposite of an acid) so when it is sprinkled over meat it raises the pH of the surface. This reaction makes it hard for the lengths of protein within the meat to tighten up. So when heat is applied to the meat, i.e cooking, the proteins don’t contract and tighten. So the meat doesn’t get tougher.

split picture showing raw chicken in a bowl being sprinkled with baking soda

Snow Peas

The Name:

Did you know that snow peas aren’t called snow peas everywhere?

In the UK they are called mange tout (or  mangetout) so for my English readers this is Takeout Style Chicken and Mange Tout.

How to prepare Snow Peas

You need to remove the tops and the thin string from the snow pea, as this can make the snow pea harder to chew. to do this:

  • Pinch the curly end of the snow pea with your thumb and forefinger.
  • Hold the snow pea in the other hand.
  • Twist off the curly end and before it is completely removed, pull it downward along the pod to remove the string.

You can also use a knife but the pinch, twist and pull method is much quicker.

split picture showing the sauce coating the chicken and snow pea stir fry

Can you reheat stir fry?

You can, and I was once told by a Chinese chef that many western dishes were created to make packaging them up and warming up leftovers easier. I don’t know how true that is, but it makes sense that takeout restaurants would want to make dishes that still taste great once you get them home.

This chicken and snow pea stir fry does reheat, but the snow peas go a little softer and not quite as green. And the sauce takes on more of  snow pea flavor.

If you have leftovers then yes you can reheat them but I wouldn’t plan to make this ahead.

What to serve with Chicken and Snow Peas

This dish is perfect for serving with plain white rice, but if you want to make something different then check out these other dishes.

  • Egg Fried Rice – RecipeTin Eats
  • Garlicky Broccoli Stir-Fry – The Woks of Life
  • Chinese Beef Chow Mein – Omnivores Cookbook
  • Steamed Mantou Buns – Me (Sprinkles and Sprouts)
a takeout style stir fry in a white bowl with a black bowl of rice behind it

Enjoy x

For other great takeout style dinners why not try:

  • Beef and Broccoli
  • Happy Family Stir Fry
  • Ginger Shrimp Stir Fry
  • Cantonese Beef and Tomato
  • Wandering Dragon Stir Fry

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3.74 from 15 votes

Takeout Style Chicken and Snow Peas

With this Takeout Style Chicken and Snow Peas stir fry, you can have a healthy Asian chicken dinner on the table in no time. Making Chinese takeout recipes at home, is much easier than you think! They are perfect for families as they are quick and there are plenty of veggies included, plus the wonderful Chinese savory sauce adds the authentic takeout taste BUT this Chicken and Snow Peas is better than takeout!
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time6 mins
Marinating time15 mins
Total Time16 mins
Course: Main
Cuisine: Chinese
Servings: 4
Calories: 209kcal
Author: Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts
For more great recipes follow me on PinterestFollow @sprinklessprout
Need Metric Measurements?Use the options below to toggle between cups and grams (if relevant)

Ingredients

US Customary – Grams

For the stir fry

  • 1 pound chicken breasts
  • 1 1/2 tsp bicarb of soda – see note 1
  • 2 cups snow peas
  • 1  clove garlic
  • 1 green onion
  • 1 tbsp oil

For the sauce

  • 1/4 cup chicken stock/broth
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch
  • 1 tbsp Chinese Cooking Wine – see note 2
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tsp oyster sauce
  • ½ teaspoon sesame oil
  • pinch pepper – white is traditional
  • 1/4 tsp sugar

Instructions

  • Slice the chicken into thin strips and place in a not metallic bowl.
  • Sprinkle over the baking soda and leave for 15 minutes.

Whilst the chicken is marinating:

  • Trim the snow peas, peel and slice the garlic and thinly slice the sting onion and set them all to one side.
  • Rinse the chicken really well to remove any traces of baking soda and then pat dry with some kitchen paper. (This can be down up to 4 hours ahead of time)
  • In a small bowl mix the sauce ingredients together and set aside.
  • Pour the oil into a large skillet or fry pan over a high heat and let it get hot.
  • Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes.
  • Add in the snow peas and chopped green onions and cook for 2 minutes until softened.
  • Turn the heat down to medium, then add in the garlic, give the sauce a stir and pour it over the meat.
  • Cook for a minute or so until the sauce has thickened and has coated the meat and veg.
  • Serve hot.

Notes

  1. Baking soda is also known as bicarb of soda, bicarbonate of soda and sodium bicarbonate. Don’t get it muddled with baking powder, that won’t tenderise you meat.
  2. Chinese Cooking Wine is sometimes called Chinese Cooking Rice Wine, Shaohsing Rice Cooking Wine, Shaoxing wine or Shaoxing Cooking Wine.

Nutrition

Calories: 209kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 920mg | Potassium: 542mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 595IU | Vitamin C: 31.6mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 1.5mg
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Filed Under: All Recipes, Chinese New Year, Main Dishes

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Bridget says

    Jul 4th 2020 at 2:25 am

    can you use teriyaki sauce

    Reply
    • Claire McEwen says

      Sep 21st 2020 at 12:32 pm

      Hi Bridget,
      I haven’t tried it, but I think it would work still. The sauce will taste different, but it would still be delicious I think 🙂
      Hope that helps!
      Cx

      Reply
  2. Jennifer says

    Jun 7th 2020 at 1:21 pm

    Is rice wine and rice wine vinegar the same thing? I’ve seen seasoned rice wine vinegar and regular. What is it all uses for?

    Reply
    • Claire McEwen says

      Jun 8th 2020 at 3:31 pm

      Hi Jennifer,
      Rice wine isn’t the same as rice wine vinegar. It is more like a seasoned wine than a vinegar. I wouldn’t replace it with vinegar. The best substitute would be a dry sherry.Or you can just leave it out, the stir fry won’t taste quite as ‘takeout’ like but it will still be good.
      Hope that helps 🙂
      Cx

      Reply
  3. Peta says

    May 22nd 2020 at 5:38 pm

    4 stars
    I doubled the sauce. I also used bok choy instead of snow peas, and…I added mixed asian mushrooms. I served this with a lemongrass infused rice. Yummmmm.

    Reply
  4. Andrea says

    Apr 23rd 2020 at 7:52 am

    5 stars
    I made a quick fried rice to go with it and thought it was delicious! I think I will double the sauce next time just to have more. I followed the directions for the chicken and agree that it was softer. Thanks for a great recipe.

    Reply
    • Claire McEwen says

      Apr 27th 2020 at 1:51 pm

      I am so pleased you enjoyed it Andrea, isn’t it amazing the difference in the chicken!
      If you double the sauce next time I would just use 1.5 tbsp of cornstarch as I think the sauce will thicken too much with 2 tbsps.
      Hope you try it again 🙂
      Cx

      Reply

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Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts

I believe cooking for those you love should be stress free and simple.

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