Panda Express Mushroom Chicken (Copycat Recipe)

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If you like Panda Express Mushroom Chicken, I believe you'll find that this copycat recipe is close to the original but is actually better ... in my humble opinion.

Tender chicken, mushrooms, and zucchini in a thick, rich soy ginger sauce ... such depths of flavor!

Pairs perfectly with your favorite rice. Or you can make up a batch of my Panda Express fried rice with scrambled eggs and mixed vegetables.

Sometimes I will serve simply with short-grain brown rice. Sometimes I go all out with fried rice. Either way, it turns out perfectly delicious!

What You'll Need

2 Tbsp olive oil (or other oil)

1 Tbsp sesame oil

1 pound chicken breast , cut into ½- to 1-inch pieces

6 medium mushrooms , 2-3 cups, thick sliced (I used cremini)

1 medium zucchini , 1-½ to 2 cups, thick sliced

For the Marinade

¼ cup soy sauce

2 Tbsp fresh ginger , peeled and minced

1 Tbsp garlic , minced

2 Tbsp rice vinegar (plain without seasonings)

2 Tbsp white wine (dry or not so dry will do - I used Pinot Grigio)

2 Tbsp corn starch

1 Tbsp honey

1 tsp sesame seeds

So how is this "copycat" recipe deemed better, you may ask?

I believe it's better due to the ooey-gooey, thick sauce versus brothy and runny that I've experienced at the restaurant.

Also, much more flavor. Think more soy, more ginger, more "I can't tell what it is" flavor ... it's just that good!

Also, I used chicken breast instead of thigh meat. Thigh meat can be very flavorful in itself. However, if you don't trim the fat, even though fat adds flavor, it messes with the whole experience (in my opinion).

Plus, when you use chicken breast meat, you can make it just as tender if you marinate and cook it right (as I'll show you in a minute).

How to Make Mushroom Chicken

The first key to making a delicious Panda Express chicken mushroom dish is to marinate the chicken while heating up the pan.

This only takes about 10 minutes, so you're not waiting around and you don't have to prep early in order to develop the flavors.

I take the fresh chopped ginger and garlic and add to a medium-sized bowl along with the soy sauce, rice vinegar, white wine, and corn starch. With a whisk, I blend it all together until corn starch is smooth.

To the marinade, I add the cut-up chicken pieces and stir together to coat all the pieces. I let this mixture sit while I heat up a heavy skillet to medium heat for about 10 minutes.

When the pan has heated for about 10 minutes, I will add the olive oil (or other oil) along with the sesame oil to the skillet. I then move the skillet around to coat the entire bottom of the pan.

Then I drain most of the liquid from the marinade into another bowl. I do this with my hand to ensure that the chicken doesn't escape.

Then I will drop the chicken by handfuls into the hot skillet, leaving most of the liquid behind in the bowl.

Naturally, some of the marinade liquid will end up in the skillet, which is fine, but you don't want a lot. You want only what naturally goes there when transferring with your hands.

Note that you will use the rest of the marinade near the end of the cook time, so don't discard it.

You will cook the chicken for about 10 minutes, turning halfway through the cook time. This should cook the chicken at least most of the way.

Next, you will turn down the heat a bit and add the mushrooms. Then you will stir, cover the pan, and cook for about 5 minutes.

While the mushrooms are cooking, you will add the honey and sesame seeds to the residual marinade. Then you will blend with a whisk until incorporated.

After cooking the mushrooms for five minutes, you will then add the zucchini and rest of the marinade to the skillet and stir.

Cover and cook only slightly (no more than 2 minutes) in order to lightly cook zucchini but keep it from going to mush.

Enjoy this delicious Panda Express mushroom chicken over your favorite rice or all by itself! Let me know what you think about it in the comments below!

Pairs fantastically with my Panda Express Fried Rice! You may also love my Panda Express Kung Pao Chicken (especially if you like spicy).

Tips & FAQs

This mushroom chicken Panda Express recipe is quite simple, but you may have some questions.

Here are some tips to help you achieve the most flavorful recipe possible.

How do I best replicate the chicken mushroom recipe from Panda Express?

You want a tender, flavorful chicken with mushrooms and zucchini in a delicious soy ginger sauce.

Ideally, the sauce will be thick and rich instead of thin and brothy. This is achieved with corn starch, which is added to the marinade.

If you want to use chicken thighs like Panda Express does, by all means do so. You will have a fattier meat that has a good amount of flavor.

You can also have the same flavor with chicken breast meat but without the extra fat. I'm not opposed to fat, but, personally, I don't like the "mouth feel" of the soft, fatty meat in the end product.

I like tender meat, though, so the key to tender meat is to cook it fast on a high heat so it browns and seals in the juices.

Marinating your chicken in the marinade while preheating the pan is also a crucial part of making this recipe a success.

Then, as already mentioned, you will cook the chicken quickly, sealing in the juices, which equates to more tender, flavorful chicken pieces.

Please let me know how your Chicken Mushroom turns out in the comments below!

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