Chicken with Walnuts

This is a recipe adaptation from a cooking class I took in Chinatown, New York.  I eliminated some of the ingredients, because I never was able to find them outside of Chinatown.  I also eliminated some of the steps.  For example, the original recipe called for boiling the walnuts in water, drying them in the oven, and then deep frying them.  I have found this dish to taste just as good with walnuts straight out of the bag or shell as the case may be.  There are alot of ingredients, but this is a fairly simple recipe.  Or at least it is now.  As the only non-Manadarin speaking person in that class I still wonder if they were just inventing extra steps to confuse me.
 

main ingredients
1/2 pound deboned chicken breast, cut into strips or cubes
4 ounces of walnuts
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove minced garlic
4 - 6 slices of fresh ginger, substitute powdered if necessary
5 dried chinese mushrooms, soaked and cut into small pieces (optional)
4 stalks of green onion, cut into 1 inch strips
1 tablespoon wine (optional)

seasoning for chicken
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 teaspoon of cornstarch or corn flour dissolved in 2 tablespoons water
1 egg white (not essential, but do not use a whole egg, no yellow!)
1/2 teaspoon walnut, sesame, or olive oil.

sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon white ground pepper
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch blended with 1 tablespoon of water
 
 

  1. Mix the chicken cubes with the seasoning.  Coat well and let sit for 20 minutes.
  2. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil.
  3. Add the chicken pieces to the water.
  4. When the chicken changes color, remove the pieces from the pot.  It doesn't matter if the water never returned to a boil.
  5. Sauté the garlic, ginger, mushrooms, and onion is oil for about 2 minutes.
  6. Add the chicken pieces.
  7. Continue to sauté until the chicken is completely cooked and all the ingredients are hated thoroughly.
  8. Combine the sauce ingredients.
  9. Gradually add to the chicken mixture, while stirring.
  10. Add the walnuts and continue to cook until all ingredients are coated with a light glaze.
  11. Sizzle in the wine and serve over white rice.


Dried chinese mushrooms are ugly shriveled up things that look almost like a dog's chew toy.  They should be soaked in cold water for 15 to 20 minutes before use.  They are usually quite large and should be cut into about 1 inch pieces before using.  If you want to substitute fresh white button mushrooms, cut them up and boil them in water for a few minutes before using in this recipe.
 

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