Panda Express Mushroom Chicken Copycat

This copycat Panda Express mushroom chicken recipe is based on the very popular mushroom chicken that you can get at Panda Express. Even better, you don’t even need to leave the house for this takeaway quality meal!

Mushroom Chicken Panda Express

You can now enjoy mushroom chicken in the comfort of your own home. It’s really easy to make, and is absolutely delicious, featuring classic Asian ingredients and flavors for a really lovely slice of homemade goodness. We’re using chicken slices with some mushroom and zucchini, all mixed up in a garlicky soy sauce. It’s astonishingly simple to make, and all you really need to do is marinate your chicken, then sear it before sauteeing the veggies in the sauce.

Easy Weeknight Dinner For Family

This is a great dish for easy weeknight dinners. It’s really quick to prepare, with no need for extensive slow-cooking or basting. The only thing that will take some time is marinating your chicken, which you can do in 30 minutes if you’re in a rush or overnight if you have some preparation time. Otherwise, it will cook in a matter of minutes! We’re using high heat and some thin strips of chicken so the chicken cooks in just a few minutes, as do the veggies. Really, cooking this dinner is just as easy and convenient as ordering takeout!

You'll Need

You will need simple ingredients to make this fantastic Asian-inspired chicken dinner in less than 30 minutes.

Sauce Ingredients

How To Make Copycat Panda Express Mushroom Chicken

• First, you need to either slice your chicken breast to a quarter inch thick, or use pre-sliced chicken breast. Either is fine, although if you slice it yourself you may find the chicken to be a little moister.
• Now, prepare your chicken stir fry marinade of soy sauce, sesame oil, cornstarch, and rice vinegar. Soak your chicken in the marinade for half an hour, or overnight. The marinating process will help add some flavor to your chicken and tenderise it.

While your chicken marinates, it’s time to prepare your veggies!

How To Saute Chicken for The Perfect Sear

We’ve assembled a few key tips for making sure you get the perfect piece of chicken every time.

• You want your pan, or work, to be hot when the chicken goes in. A vegetable based oil with a high smoke point is perfect! Avocado oil, Canola or peanut oil is great.
• Don’t pour any of your excess marinade into the pan. You want to drip off the excess marinade before adding the chicken to the pan.
• Avoid overcrowding the pan. Your chicken really should be spaced apart enough not to touch.
• You want to lay your chicken flat in a single layer. As above, there ought to be no overlapping, as this causes the chicken to steam rather than sear.
• While it might be tempting to handle your chicken as it cooks, do not touch! Leave your chicken alone until it gets a golden brown sear, which should take about 30 seconds to 1 minute per side with the quarter inch pieces we’re using.

We’ve made a great all-purpose chicken stir fry marinade. It brings plenty of flavor to your chicken, and doesn’t overwhelm it either.

Once your chicken is done, remove it from the pan. Now add garlic, ginger, your mushrooms and zucchini. As with the chicken, you want the pan to be hot when your veggies go in. When you cook vegetables over low heat, they release quite a bit of liquid, instead of searing. You don’t want steamed vegetables. You want a nice, golden brown sear on all your ingredients. Remember that a lot of Asian food is all about high heat.

Once you have a nice sear on your veggies, you can return the chicken to the pan. Throw your stir fry sauce in there as well. Saute the lot together for one to two minutes, and serve it immediately. If you want a less saucy variation, simply use less of the sauce.

What To Serve With Panda Express Mushroom Chicken

We encourage you to serve this chicken dish with Instant Pot Jasmine Rice or noodles. You could, if you want to reduce your carb intake, serve with lettuce, or in a nice wrap.

Another great idea, if you like your Asian food spicy, is to add some chilli paste or flakes. You could also try adding some other veggies, like carrots, water chesnuts, broccoli, or celery.

Tips For Making Mushroom Chicken

• A longer marinating time will give you a softer, more flavorsome chicken experience. It depends on your own personal palate, but for a marinade you really need at least 30 minutes. If you soak the chicken in your marinade overnight, it will have a stronger flavor with plenty of tender, juicy chicken.
• You want to stir your sauce before adding it to the pan. The cornstarch we’re using as a thickener will settle, making it seem like a different viscosity to what it actually is.
• Serve the mushroom chicken immediately after cooking.

Storing Mushroom Chicken Leftovers

One of the great things about this recipe is how well it turns into leftovers! If you have any extra chicken left after you’ve finished dinner, you can store it really easily.

Any leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. You want to eat the chicken within that time frame, as cooked chicken turns relatively quickly. Besides, like most meals, this is way better when you eat it fresh!

More Asian-Inspired Recipes

Shrimp Yaki Udon

Black Pepper Chicken

Air Fryer Sweet and Sour Chicken

Bang Bang Shrimp

Black Pepper Beef

Yakisoba Noodles

If you make this recipe be sure to leave a comment or give this recipe a rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐! I will be happy to hear from you!

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