Serves 4

½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ to 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into ¾ inch pieces
2 teaspoons cornstarch
¼ cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons Asian sesame oil
½ pound snow peas, trimmed
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
6 green onions, white parts only, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
¼ pound bean sprouts
1/3 cup chipped fresh cilantro
freshly ground pepper to taste
Rice

Sprinkle the salt evenly over the chicken and set aside. In a small bowl, stir the cornstarch into the stock to dissolve. Set aside.

In a large sauté pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the sesame oil over medium-high heat. Add the snow peas and stir gently. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook until slightly wilted, about 3 minutes. Transfer the snow peas to a bowl and set aside.

Add the chicken to the pan, raise the heat to medium, cover, and cook for 2 minutes. Flip the chicken pieces over, re-cover, and cook until the chicken is opaque throughout, another 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to the bowl holding the snow peas.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the remaining 1 tablespoon sesame oil to the pan. Add the ginger, green onions, and garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Quickly stir the cornstarch mixture, then stir it into the pan with the soy sauce and rice vinegar. Bring to a gentle boil and boil, stirring, for a minute or two to thicken the pan sauce. Return the chicken and snow peas to the pan, stir well, and reheat to serving temperature, 30 to 45 seconds.

Remove from the heat and mix in the bean sprouts. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with the cilantro. Grind a little pepper over the top. Serve immediately with the rice.