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This Honey Lemon Chicken and Green Beans Stir Fry has a ton of flavor and can have dinner on the table in just 20 minutes!
Lemon chicken is just one of those dinner recipes that just about everyone enjoys. It’s always been a favorite of mine, although the same old thing can get boring. Introducing the opposite of boring – Honey Lemon Chicken and Green Beans Stir Fry. This dish has got it all! Crunchy green beans, tender, flavorful chicken, and a sweet and tart honey lemon stir fry sauce that coats every bite.
HOW TO MAKE LEMON CHICKEN AND GREEN BEANS STIR FRY
The best part is that this Honey Lemon Chicken and Green Beans Stir Fry can be ready in around 20 minutes, prep time and all. I did marinate my chicken in soy sauce and rice vinegar for about 30 minutes before cooking, but you could also just toss the chicken in that combo and and let it sit while you prep and start cooking. The chicken cooks in the marinade anyway. Either way it’s delicious!
Start by cutting up the chicken and the green beans. Toss the chicken into the soy sauce and rice wine vinegar marinade and set aside while you cut up the green beans and mix up the honey lemon sauce. Cook the green beans, then cook the chicken, then cook the honey lemon sauce. Mix it all together and simmer for a few minutes…and that’s it!
You’ll need a nice big 12-inch skillet or wok (I use this Calphalon Everday All-Purpose Pan – aff). It’s much more flexible than a Wok and it works great for everything from stir fry to fried rice to spaghetti.
How do you cook green beans?
For this Honey Lemon Chicken recipe, the green beans are cooked in olive oil until they are tender, but still crisp, then transferred to a large bowl or plate. Some other options for cooking fresh green beans include:
- Steaming – add the green beans and a little bit of water to a large skillet and boil for 4-6 minutes with the lid on. You can then saute them to add flavor, or eat them as is.
- Blanch – This method is recommended for cooking the beans part of the way, then placing them in an ice bath to stop the cooking process. You can then store them for a few days in an air-tight container. I use this method if I’ve bought some green beans and didn’t get to use them all up (or forgot about them!). It extends their shelf life by a few days. This is also a great way to prep fresh green beans for a green bean casserole.
- Roasting – Set the oven to a high temperature (425 degrees). Toss the beans in some olive oil or butter and seasonings and roast in the oven for about 10 minutes. The green beans will get a little crisp and have an incredible flavor, almost like grilling.
You can also cook green beans on the grill or in your pressure cooker or Instant Pot.
How do you make the lemon sauce for the chicken?
- Add the chicken to the skillet, marinade and all, and cook for several minutes. The marinade will boil, making it safe to eat. Be sure to move the chicken around the skillet and turn each piece over at least one to get it brown and cooked through. Set the chicken aside with the green beans. PRO TIP: Generally I wouldn’t recommend using the marinade that the raw chicken was sitting in because it can breed bacteria. However if you boil the marinade at a high temperature it kills the bacteria making it safe to eat.
- The honey lemon sauce is a combination of honey, lemon juice, soy sauce, red pepper flakes and cornstarch. The sauce is heated to a low boil – it will get nice and thick and yummy. You’ll know it’s done when you can slide your spoon or whisk through it and it doesn’t fill in right away.
- Once the sauce is thickened you can add the chicken and green beans back in and toss it all around to coat. I like topping this dish with some sesame seeds and slice green onions, but that is totally optional.
I am already dreaming of the next time I will make this Honey Lemon Chicken and Green Beans Stir Fry…tonight it is!
More Asian Inspired Recipes
Honey Lemon Chicken and Green Beans
Ingredients
Honey Lemon Chicken and Green Beans
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized pieces (2 large chicken breasts)
- 3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- salt and pepper
- Olive oil
- 12 ounces green beans trimmed and cut into bite sized pieces (about 2 cups)
- Honey Lemon Sauce see below
Honey Lemon Sauce:
- 3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
- Juice and zest from 1 large lemon
- 1/4 cup honey or more/less to taste
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 garlic clove minced
Instructions
- Combine the chicken, soy sauce and rice wine vinegar in a large zip-top bag, and toss until the chicken is evenly coated. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 8 hours. (If no time to marinate, just toss the chicken, soy sauce and vinegar in a small bowl and let sit while you prep the rest of the recipe).
- In a small bowl, whisk the sauce ingredients together until combined (cornstarch should no longer be visible). Set aside.
- Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add green beans and season with a pinch of salt. Stir and cook for 3-4 minutes, until beans are bright green but still crisp. Transfer to a large plate or bowl and set aside.
- Add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet over medium-high heat. Pour the chicken from the bag into the hot skillet. Season the chicken with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Add the chicken and saute for 5-7 minutes or until cooked through and no longer pink, stirring and turning the chicken occasionally for even browning. Using a slotted spoon, add the chicken to the plate with the green beans.
- Pour the whisked honey lemon sauce into the empty saute pan. Cook over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes, or until the sauce reaches a low boil and thickens. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking (salt, pepper, honey, lemon).
- Add the chicken and green beans back into the pan and toss until evenly coated with the sauce. Remove from heat and serve immediately, topped with green onions and sesame seeds, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
I loved this recipe. Thanks so much!
You are so Welcome Zahra! Thanks for stopping by.
Made it for dinner last night .. came out perfectly. Loved the mix of lemon and honey ! Thanks for the recipe !
You are so welcome Akriti, thank you so much for taking the time to leave some positive feedback.
I am a terrible cook but I felt like a chef after making this! This was incredibly easy to prepare and make. I did increase the sauce ingredients but other than that this is pure perfection! Thank you for sharing this recipe and making me look like a great cook! ?
You’re so welcome Shauna! thank you so much for stopping by!
Very tasty sauce! I stir-fried the fresh green beans without blanching, which left them crispy with a bit of char/caramelizqtion on the outside. Will try this with a stir fry vege mix and using pork or shrimp, this sauce is versatile enough for both types of meat. Thanks for the great recipe.
This was excellent!!!!
Turned out great, great flavor! Thanks.
So glad you enjoyed it Karen! Thank you so much for stopping by.
Can you use regular soy sauce with this recipe?
Sure!
think if I start with pre cooked chicken I can make this and not totally over cook the chicken and ruin the meal. this sounds pretty yummy.
For pre-cooked chicken, just cook the green beans and the sauce, then stir in the chicken at the end.
Made this tonight and it was AMAZING, thank you!!!! I did add in diced onion and minced garlic to the green beans. I didn’t have a fresh lemon on hand but had lemon juice so I can’t wait to try it again with the added lemon zest!!!
Thank you June! and great idea about the lemon juice! YUM!
Do you give the Total Carb and sugar numbers anywhere? Love the recipes but not sure how a Type 2 diabetic can use them.
Hi Tom, Unfortunately since I am not a nutritionist I am not always able to provide nutritional information for each recipe. However there are great sites out there, like myfitnesspal.com, that can help.
Loved this!! So quick and easy. Kid friendly too. I will definitely make this again. Thank you! ?
Thank you Krista!
287.5 calories for four servings total 1,150 I came up with for the whole meal using MyFitnessPal
Thank you for the great feed back Danielle!
Super helpful thank you.
This was so good, I had to fight with myself not to lick the sauce off my plate! The cooking process I followed was a hair different – I cooked the green beans, removed, and cooked the chicken as instructed, but then I tossed the green beans and the sauce in together at the end instead of removing the chicken to thicken the sauce. Worked just fine like that. Next time I will try using more of a variety of veggies!
i didnt find this recipe on myfitnesspal?
Loved this dish. Just wondering how many calories is in this meal.
You can find nutritional information using my fitness pal. It’s a great tool!
nice recipe..!!
Thank you Anil
This is an awesome recipe. Super easy and delicious! Thank you for sharing!
Hi Maggie,
Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed it!
Made it and it’s pretty darn good! Love the sweet and spicy of the sauce and felt very cool turning liquid into a legitimate sauce! Definitely took me longer to prep than 10 minutes and figuring out how many bowls I needed to marinate chicken, hold green beans and then hold chicken while sauce was being made cause me to make a decent sized mess in the kitchen. The only thing I’d like to change is the consistency of my sauce – it had small chunks in it here and there which I think were the lemon zest. Did I do too much or is that normal? Your pics make it seem like the sauce is totally smooth. Maybe I overlooked it!
It does require a few bowls, that’s true! When you whisk the sauce ingredients together, the cornstarch should basically disappear. I can update the recipe to reflect that, but it sounds like maybe you didn’t whisk it long enough. Either way, I’m really glad you enjoyed the recipe and thanks for leaving your feedback!
P.S. Oh, and I had sesame seeds! Made it look so gourmet! (Maybe you should put the green onion and sesame seeds in the ingredient list with the word optional.)
This (OK, sort-of this) was great. My fiancé really liked it too. I’ll explain the sort-of; I can’t be the only person on the planet that does this. No plans for dinner, no way to go shopping, have to make dinner out of whatever’s in the refrigerator and cupboard. Survey both, note ingredients on hand, enter RECIPE FOR “X” INGREDIENTS into search engine and cross fingers. If all ingredients don’t match substitute like crazy and, again, cross fingers. Yep, boneless, skinless chicken breasts and yellow and green string beans came up with your recipe, thank you. Substitutions: thought I had rice wine vinegar but had to substitute apple cider vinegar, green beans => fresh yellow and green string beans, fresh lemon => bottled lemon juice, no ginger/oh well, red pepper flakes => ground red pepper, minced garlic cloves => Amish sweet pickled garlic cloves. This recipe is very forgiving because, like I said, it turned out great. Thank you.
I love that you made it your own Suzanne, thanks for sharing!
This is an awesome recipe. Super easy and delicious! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you OMAR!