Salsa Chicken Stir-Fry

This stir-fry takes a hard left from the usual Asian flavors and goes full Tex-Mex. Thin-stripped chicken gets seared with onion and garlic, then tossed with vegetables, chili powder, kidney beans, and thick salsa for a one-skillet dinner that’s on the table in 25 minutes.

The salsa is doing the work of an entire sauce here. It brings tomato, heat, acid, and seasoning in one pour. Adding chili powder on top of that deepens the spice layer and gives the vegetables a lightly toasted, smoky flavor as they cook.

Kidney beans add protein and heft that turn this from a light stir-fry into a proper filling meal, especially served over rice. Keep the vegetables tender-crisp. Overcooked stir-fry vegetables are sad vegetables.

Kitchen Tips

• Cut the chicken into thin, even strips so they cook quickly and at the same rate. Thick, uneven pieces mean some are done while others are still raw.
• Stir-fry the chicken first for 3 minutes to get some color before the vegetables go in. Crowding everything in at once steams the meat.
• Use thick, chunky salsa, not thin restaurant-style. Thin salsa turns the dish watery.
• Rinse and drain the canned kidney beans well. The starchy canning liquid makes the sauce gluey.

Variations

• Black bean version: Swap kidney beans for black beans and add a squeeze of lime juice at the end for a brighter flavor.
• Shrimp swap: Replace the chicken with shrimp. Add them after the vegetables are almost done since they cook in just 2 to 3 minutes.