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Weeknight style 25 Minute Black Pepper Jalapeño Basil Chicken Stir Fry. The super fast chicken stir fry that everyone requests. Quick-cooking chicken tossed in a sweet, tangy, and spicy black pepper sauce with plenty of bell peppers, jalapeños, and basil. Serve this chicken over coconut lemongrass rice. Every bite is saucy, sweet, spicy, and perfectly seasoned with basil. It’s delicious and healthy.
The summer of my freshman year, I remember making chicken stir-fry all the time. This was the summer I really started to get into cooking. It was also the summer I got into the habit of cooking dinner for my family, I loved it. It was always such a release of creative energy for me at the end of the day.
Chicken stir-fry was one of the dinners I had the most fun experimenting with. You don’t need a specific recipe for stir-fry. For me, it’s always a mix of whatever vegetables I have on hand. And my sauce, it’s almost never the same.
Stir-fry is fun because you can do what you want with it. So today I’m sharing a quick stir-fry recipe that was just so good it needed to be written down…and hopefully made on repeat.
This really is fast, here are the details
First up, toss the chicken with a little cornstarch, turmeric, and ginger. Tossing the chicken with cornstarch helps the sauce to thicken nicely around the chicken.
Now make the sauce. It’s simply, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, fish sauce (if you’d like), and plenty of black pepper.
Then stir fry the peppers and jalapeños until they just begin to soften. Add the chicken and give everything a nice toss. Then pour the sauce over top and let it simmer down and thicken over the chicken and peppers
While the chicken cooks, I always make some coconut rice with a touch of lemongrass. Using coconut milk in the rice adds additional creaminess, and the lemongrass keeps it flavorful. SO GOOD.
Now, put it all together
Spoon the rice into bowls, then add the chicken and peppers. Finish each bowl off with fresh basil.
Then serve it up right off the stove.
This really is that simple and that quick-cooking. Honestly, this will take you no more than thirty minutes to make.
Looking for other quick stir fry recipes? Here are some favorites:
30 Minute Better Than Takeout Thai Drunken Noodles
20 Minute Stir Fried Honey Ginger Sesame Noodles
30 Minute Extra Saucy Thai Summer Noodle Stir Fry with Sesame Peanuts
Lastly, if you make these 25 Minute Black Pepper Jalapeño Basil Chicken Stir Fry, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
25 Minute Black Pepper Jalapeño Basil Chicken Stir Fry
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 335 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1-2 teaspoons black pepper
- 3 tablespoons sesame oil or extra virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce (optional)
- 2 bell peppers, sliced
- 1-2 jalapeños, seeded, if desired, and sliced
- 1 medium shallot, sliced
- 1 cup fresh Thai or regular basil chopped
Instructions
- 1. In a medium bowl, toss together the chicken, cornstarch, turmeric, ginger, and black pepper. 2. In a glass jar, combine the honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, fish sauce (if using) and 1/4 cup water.3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bell peppers, jalapeños, and shallots, cook 2-3 minutes, until the peppers are charring. Stir in the chicken, tossing to combine with the peppers, cook 2 minutes. 4. Pour in the honey/soy sauce mix. Bring the sauce to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until the sauce coats the chicken, about 8-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the basil.5. Serve the chicken and sauce over bowls of coconut lemongrass rice (recipe in notes). Top with plenty of fresh basil.
Notes
Coconut Lemongrass Rice: Combine 1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk and 1/2 cup water in a medium pot. Bring to a low boil. Add 1 cup basmati rice, 1-2 tablespoons lemongrass paste, and a pinch of salt. Stir to combine, cover, then turn the heat down to the lowest setting possible. Allow the rice to cook 10 minutes on low, then turn the heat off completely and let the rice sit, covered, for another 15-20 minutes (don’t take any peeks inside!). Remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork.
Made this tonight (Jan 12, 2023) and my sons and I really liked it. Great flavor! Whenever I need a recipe I go to Half Baked Harvest! The best!
Hey Corey,
Happy Friday!!⛄️ Thanks so much for making this dish and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a hit! xx
This was excellent! I’m a veggie fan so I added baby corn, mushrooms, and snap peas. Sauce as listed, was enough for all the extra veggies I added.
Husband annihilated it too.
Thanks!
Hey Melissa,
Wonderful!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! xT
I just made this for dinner for my husband and I. Six servings? Haha. He ate almost all of it! I didn’t tell him there was fish sauce in it and he didn’t know the difference. I made a few adaptations (shrimp instead of chicken, pickled jalapenos, added broccoli) all with excellent results. This is a keeper!
P.S. I have all of your cookbooks and follow you on IG. You’re the best!
Hey Carol,
Happy Friday!!❄️🧑🎄 I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your review, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! Thanks so much for your kind message:) xx
Thank you for sharing all your delicious recipes!!!! I have made 8 of them so far and LOVED everyone of them! I would like to make your coconut lemongrass rice with brown basmati rice instead of white basmati rice. Could you advise me on cooking times please?
Thanks,
Jason
Hi Jason,
Thanks so much for trying so many recipes! I would cook the brown rice according to packages instructions! I hope you love the recipe! xT
So saucy and delicious. I love spice so I kept all the seeds of my jalapenos and it was spicy but balanced with the honey. Next time I’d add broccoli for more veggies. Great twist on stir fry!
Hey Lauren,
Wonderful!! Thanks a bunch for trying this recipe out, I am so glad it was enjoyed! xTieghan
This is delicious! We loved it, and I’ll definitely be making it again! It’s just that it takes waaaay longer than 25 minutes to prepare. I think it took me 15 or 20 minutes to trim and slice the peppers and shallot.
Nonetheless, this is a new favorite.
Hey Jane,
Happy Sunday!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad it was a hit! Sorry this took you longer than expected! xTieghan
This was just delicious! The combo of the jalapeños and black pepper with the perfect sauce—yum! We added some baby Japanese eggplants sliced thin and it was so tasty. We’ve made a ton of your recipes but this one is now one of our favorites!
Hi Lucy,
Happy Friday! I am so excited that you enjoyed this recipe, thanks a lot for giving it a go! xT?
My wife and I pretty much only make HBH dishes, and this is one of the best. I’d give it 6 stars if I could.
Hey Derek!
Fantastic! Thanks for your comment and trying the recipe:) I am so glad it was enjoyed! Thanks for making so many recipes!! xxT
Such a good one! Thanks for always coming through!
Hi Brittany,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it was enjoyed:) xx
I’ve never made a bad recipe from HBH, but this supersedes any other recipe. It is shockingly good.
Hey Lindsey,
Amazing!! I am so glad this recipe was a hit, thanks a lot for trying it out! Have the best weekend! ☀️xx
This was great! Added some baby corn for more veggies.
Hey Jaime,
Awesome!! Love to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks for making it and sharing your feedback!! 🙂
One of our fav weeknight meals. The coconut rice is *chefs kiss*
Hi Jordan,
I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks so much for making it and sharing your review! xTieghan
This was a hit for my husband and me. The perfect amount of heat and so flavourful! This will become a regular part of our dinner rotation – thanks for the great recipe!
Hey Larissa,
Awesome!! Thanks so much for your comment and making this recipe. So glad it hear it was enjoyed! xTieghan
One of my favourite recipes from half baked harvest ? I never thought the combination of jalapeños and basil would be soooo good. I’ve made this more than once already.
Hey Nicole,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it!! Have a great week:) xxT
The stirfry was good but i’m more excited with the perfect rice!! I’ve never used this method for rice and it came out perfectly! ( couldn’t find the lemongrass paste so used lemon rind instead)
Hey Lauren,
Happy Sunday!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for giving it a go! xx