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1
In a medium bowl, toss the chicken with the scallion whites, about half the garlic and ginger, the soy sauce, sugar, 1 teaspoon of the cornstarch, 1 teaspoon of the salt, the sherry, and the sesame oil.
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2
Marinate at room temperature for 15 minutes.
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3
Mix the remaining cornstarch with 1/3 cup water.
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4
Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat.
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5
Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and heat.
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6
Add the broccoli stems, and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
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7
Add the florets and the remaining garlic, ginger, 2 tablespoons of water, and season with 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper.
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8
Stir-fry until the broccoli is bright green but still crisp, about 2 minutes.
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9
Transfer to a plate.
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10
Get the skillet good and hot again, and then heat 2 more tablespoons oil.
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11
Add the chicken and chili flakes if using.
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12
Stir-fry until the chicken loses its raw color and gets a little brown, about 3 minutes.
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13
Add the hoisin sauce, return the broccoli to the pan and toss to heat through.
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14
Stir in the reserved cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil to thicken.
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15
Add more water if need to thin the sauce, if necessary.
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16
Taste and season with salt and pepper, if you like.
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17
Mound the stir-fry on a serving platter or divide among 4 plates and garnish with sesame seeds; serve with rice.
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18
Notes: The garlic and ginger can be chopped together in a minichopper to save time.
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19
Scallion greens can also be used to garnish, if you like that extra onion-y flavor and you want to use up the scallions.
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20
The broccoli stems are used (love all that fiber) to add textural contrast and also to help bulk up the dish, and why waste them?
