The name of this recipe Panda Express mushroom chicken, tells you about the main ingredients here – mushrooms and chicken. It is a delicate combination of these two ingredients and also zucchini, which is then wok-tossed with Asian ginger soy sauce. The chicken is marinated first and then seared perfectly. The vegetables are mixed and sautéed with ginger, garlic, and rice vinegar to prepare the rich and delicious Asian sauce.
You can pour the sauce over steamed rice and have it with your mushroom chicken. It will be a perfect meal for a weekday dinner that the entire family will love and will want to have it often.
Panda Express is a popular fast food chain restaurant of the United States, with its origins going back to China. They have thousands of outlets all over the country and also overseas in many places.
Panda Express
Founded in 1983, Panda Express is now the biggest Chinese restaurant group in the United States. Headquartered in California, they operate 2,200 outlets all over the country and beyond. Initially, their outlets were mostly located at shopping mall food courts, but now they have stores at airports, casinos, universities, and amusement parks. The group also owns the Panda Express, Panda Inn, and the Hibachi-San brand, which is a Japanese sushi and teppanyaki grill restaurant.
Apart from the US, Panda Express outlets can also be found in Mexico, South Korea, Canada, Japan, Guatemala, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Aruba, Philippines, and El Salvador.
How to Make Panda Express Mushroom Chicken
You can prepare a copycat recipe that will look and taste exactly like the mushroom chickens they serve at the Panda Express outlets by following the directions here. Or if you want, you can also customize it to make the chicken exactly like you want.
This stir fried Asian recipe goes very well with steamed noodles or rice. You can also store and reheat any leftovers and have it for lunch the next day. Just make sure not to overcook your chicken, because white meat can become slightly dry.
Panda Express Mushroom Chicken
Course: MainCuisine: ChineseDifficulty: Easy4
servings15
minutes15
minutes245
kcalQuick and easy just like Panda Express, you will find making this copycat Panda Express Zucchini Mushroom Chicken a breeze.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon 1 of canola oil
1 pound 1 of chicken breasts, boneless & skinless
3 tablespoons 3 of cornstarch
8 ounces 8 of crimini mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon 1 of sesame oil
¼ cup of soy sauce
1 zucchini, cut lengthwise and then into ½-inch slices
2 teaspoons 2 of sugar
1 tablespoon 1 of rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons 2 of ginger, minced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
Sesame seeds for garnishing, optional
Directions
- Cut your chicken into bite-sized thin slices.
- Toss it with the cornstarch.
- Heat the sesame and canola oil in your pan. Add the chicken.
- Cook each side for 2 minutes on medium heat. It should turn brown.
- Take out the chicken from your pan. Increase the heat to high.
- Now, add the zucchini and mushrooms. Cook until you see them turning brown.
- Add the ginger and garlic. Cook for 30 seconds.
- Keep cooking for 3 more minutes. The veggies should become soft slightly.
- Add your chicken back. Coat well by stirring.
- Add the rice wine vinegar, sugar, and soy sauce. Coat well.
- Serve your mushroom chicken with rice.
Notes
- This recipe recommends the use of chicken breasts. However, you can also use skinless and boneless chicken thighs as well if you want. Chicken tenders will be nice, sliced into bite-sized chunks, especially if you use in casseroles.
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Nutrition Facts Per Serving
Calories 245, Carbohydrates 11g, Cholesterol 72mg, Total Fat 11g, Protein 27g, Sugar 3g, Sodium 945mg, Potassium 713mg
The Perfect Way to Sauté the Chicken
Keep the following directions in mind and it will be perfect –
- Make sure that your wok or pan is hot. You should be able to use the vegetable oil in high heat like avocado oil.
- Do not crowd your pan. There should be some gap between the pieces of chicken. Maintain adequate gap. Keep the chicken in one single layer. Remember, the chicken will steam if there is overlapping.
- Drip off the excess marinade. Also, take care not to pour the marinade liquid into your pan.
- Don’t touch the chicken until it turns golden brown. For each side, this should take you between 30 seconds and a minute.
Is the Mushroom Chicken Recipe Healthy?
Typically, Panda Express will use chicken thighs for this recipe. The dark meat they offer has more fat and flavor. However, you can also prepare a healthier version of the mushroom chicken at home by using bite-sized chunks of boneless chicken tenderloin or breasts if you want.
But don’t worry if you want to have it like the original version. This mushroom chicken recipe from Panda Express is healthy just the way they serve at their outlets because it gives you only 246 calories. So it helps you keep that count down. However, having said this, the sodium count at 945 mg is very high, which is why many people will customize this recipe at home to make it healthier.
Most recipes of Panda Express are not gluten free. But you can make it gluten free as well if you prepare this dish at home. There are various ways to customize.
What Can You Eat with your Panda Express Mushroom Chicken?
You can have this mushroom chicken dish with simple white rice on the side for your everyday dinner. This dish can also be eaten with fried rice, chicken and chopped cabbage salad, and pork and veggie potstickers. Prepare and eat this chicken with another copycat recipe from Panda Express – Chow Mein. They are all authentic Chinese feasts you will love. You can also customize many of them to suit your own preferences and taste buds.
Other Recipes
Other great copycat recipes we know you will enjoy from this restaurant are the following:
Conclusion
This is a yummy and easy to make copycat mushroom chicken that they serve in the Panda Express outlets. It offers 4 servings. The sauce, mushrooms, chicken preparation… everything is yummy. You should be able to make this at home easily in about half an hour. Everyone will love this authentic Asian dish.
