Velveting Chicken Breasts

Ever notice how the chicken in stir fry at your favorite Chinese restaurant is incredibly tender? It’s because they tenderize chicken using a simple method called “velveting.”  

It’s a quick and easy method that any home cook can do. Use this for all your favorite Chinese chicken dishes, such as Cashew Chicken, Chicken Stir-Fry, Chow Mein, and Kung Pao Chicken. This is a game changer!

Chicken can be stored in the refrigerator for a few hours before adding it to your recipe, and it only takes a couple of minutes to finish cooking.

Velveting Chicken Breast, Chinese Restaurant-Style

Annette Law

Chicken as moist and tender as the best Chinese restaurant. There are several different methods for velvetingchicken.  Here are two of my favorites.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Resting Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

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Instructions

 

Method 1

• Ingredients
• 1 egg white
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon Chinese rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 8 cups of water
• 1 tablespoon peanut oil or canola oil

Directions

• Whisk egg white, vinegar, cornstarch, and salt together in a bowl until the marinade is smooth. Add chicken; cover with plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator, about 30 minutes.
• Fill a large pot with at least 8 cups of water and add the oil. Using high heat, bring to a rapid boil. Reduce heat to medium.
• Pour excess marinade off the chicken. Add chicken to the pot; boil until white on the outside but still raw in the middle, about 1 minute. Strain off excess liquid.
• Store in the refrigerator in a sealed container until ready to use, up to a few hours.
• When ready to use, cook the chicken until it is no longer pink and juices run clear.

Method 2

• Ingredients
• 8 oz chicken breast slices OR bite size pieces (not whole pieces, Note 1)
• 3/4 tsp baking soda (bi-carb/bi-carbonate)
• Instructions
• Place chicken in a bowl and sprinkle baking soda all over the surface.
• Toss with fingers to coat as evenly as possible.
• Refrigerate 20 minutes for slices, 30 minutes for bite size pieces.
• Rinse well in colander to remove baking soda.
• Shake off, then gently pat away excess water (it doesn’t need to be completely dry).
• Use as directed in chosen recipe – stir fries and noodles (see in post for suggested recipes). Can be marinated, cooked on the stovetop, deep-fried, or simmered in broth.

Notes

• Only use slices and bite-size pieces – These methods of tenderizing chicken are suitable for sliced or small bite-size pieces of chicken, not a whole breast or thigh fillet.
• The baking soda is too strong and will over-tenderize the outside before the inside is tenderized.
• I’ve left chicken marinating for almost 1 hour, and it’s been fine. A bit softer than I’d like, but it wasn’t too soft.
• I only tenderise breast and tenderloin. I don’t think chicken thigh needs it, They are juicy enough as is.
• Storage: Although I can’t prove this definitively, I believe the shelf life of raw chicken is slightly shortened. I like to use it within 24 hours or freeze it.

Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content may vary depending on the brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and other factors.

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