Nuts to You

This is another adaptation of a recipe I received from my fiancee's father, who is my go-to guy for anything and everything stir-fry. Chicken with almonds is a mighty tasty and mighty healthy dish.

First thing is first, and that's the almonds. If you are like me and cannot find peeled almonds, you need to do it yourself. Don’t skip this step and leave the skins on, they get rubbery and gross when stir fried. Bring a small pot of water to a near boil and dump in your almonds. Simmer for about 3 minutes, drain, and run under cold water to shock them. The skins should now easily peel off, leaving you with nice, naked almonds.

Chicken With Almonds

1 pound chicken breast, trimmed of fat and sliced into bite size chunks
1 egg white
1 T cornstarch
½ t sugar
1 t salt
½ cup peanut oil
1 cup almonds, blanched and peeled
4-6 garlic cloves, smashed
4-6 thin slices of fresh ginger
6-12 small dried chiles
1 T dry sherry
1 T soy sauce

Combine the egg white, corn starch, sugar, and salt, add to a small zip-top baggie. Add the chicken (I use a baggie to maximize contact with marinade), seal and marinate for 30 minutes- 1 hour.

Heat a wok over medium-high heat and add the oil. When nice and hot add chicken and stir-fry until just cooked through. Remove the chicken and set aside on a rack or paper towels to drain. Add the almonds to the oil and cook until starting to brown. Remove and drain. Drain off all of the oil but about 1-2T and reduce heat to medium. To this add the chiles, ginger and garlic, cooking until browned (this flavors the oil). Remove the seasonings and discard. Add the chicken back to the wok, reheat for about 1 minute, then add the sherry and soy sauce, which should quickly bubble and thicken to form a sauce. Serve with almonds on the side and rice.