Moo Goo Gai Pan

Posted byNoriePosted inChicken, Recipe, VegetablesTags:,

I learned that the name of this dish has English translation and that is:

Moo goo means mushrooms

Gai means chicken and

Pan means slices

There you go!  Therefore, you can’t omit or substitute those main ingredients and call the dish moo goo gai pan. You can, however use any kind of vegetables you like and choose your seasonings, including how you cook it. 

This recipe is simple, as simple and quick as I can put them together with what I have on hand in my fridge and freezer.  I confess that I never had any planned menu when I go to the grocery store. I always do it on the fly and see what vegetables look good on the shelves and that’s what I buy.  I keep them the refrigerator bins then figure out what I can put together for our dinner each day.  

The thing I don’t particularly like about shopping in grocery stores is that you are forced to buy produce more than you need because they are pre-packaged and pre-bundled, unlike going to a wet market where you can pick only as much or as few of the vegetables you need for the dishes you want to cook for a meal. But over the years, because there are no wet markets here I learned to come up and sometimes invent dishes so that I can use the leftover vegetables in the fridge to avoid too much waste.  Going to farmers market is worse sometimes because you almost have to buy the vegetables in bulk if you want to save some money. Wet market and farmers market are not the same, as far as I know.

I came up with this moo goo gai pan dish, not really knowing at the time what it was called.  I had the vegetables but I did not have fresh mushrooms.  I had a can of button mushrooms and that’s what I used but you can use other kinds like Shiitake mushrooms, fresh or dried and it will enhance the flavor a lot. It will give it an authentic Chinese umami flavor. In my opinion however, the Shiitake mushroom have a strong flavor so use them sparingly or just add a few slices to go with the button mushrooms.

This dish is mostly veggies and mushrooms so you only need a few slices of chicken.  You can slice them off from any part of the chicken but for ease, slicing from the white meat or breast is ideal.

Put together and let stand at least 30 minutes:

  • About ½ cup of thin sliced chicken pieces (slice against the grain, about 1/8″ thick or thinner)
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. Baking Soda (not baking powder)
  • ¼ tsp. black pepper

Ingredients:

  • 1 can sliced mushrooms or fresh sliced mushrooms, 4 oz.
  • 1 cup broccoli florets
  • A few Snowpeas
  • ½ of a zucchini cut in disks
  • 1 stalk celery (sliced thin diagonally)  
  • Carrots cut in thin disks
  • Baby corn
  • Sliced water chestnuts
  • 1/2 small yellow onion sliced thin
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 1 green onion cut 2”
  • 2 TBS light soy sauce
  • 1 TBS oyster sauce
  • 2 tsp. Shaoxing wine
  • 1 tsp. Mirin or sugar
  • 1 tsp. sesame oil
  • ½ cup water
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 TBS. cornstarch dissolved in ¼ cup cool water
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Note:  The vegetables listed above are suggestions.  Use what you like or what you have available. Use a few or all of them.  They are all good together.  However, limit the quantity to make about 4 cups of them all together for the above recipe.

Prepare the seasonings in a small bowl to get them ready.  This is supposed to be cooked quickly so make sure all your ingredients are ready before you start.

Add the 1 tsp. cornstarch in the chicken that was set aside and mix them well before you heat the pan.

Heat 1 TBS. oil in a wok or skillet then stir-fry the chicken quickly until they are white and opaque.  Remove from pan and set aside.  Add more oil in the skillet or wok if it got dried.  Saute the onions and garlic until onions are transparent and limp.  Add the chicken, then  add the water and the vegetables.  Saute and simmer until the vegetables are cooked but still crisp.  Add the seasonings and stir-fry for a minute.  Finally, add the cornstarch slurry and heat until thick. 

Taste and adjust the salt or soy sauce to your taste. 

I think the Chinese Broccoli or gai lan will be good for this instead of the regular American broccoli. 

Transfer to a service plate and enjoy while warm with warm white rice.