Jessica's Un-Chinese Stir Fry (Soy-Free)

"Stir Fry without Soy Sauce?!? But how could you possibly do that?" I find myself asked by bystanders, incredulous that its possible to make stir fry that still tastes good, but without the soy. "But isn't soy sauce one of the key ingredients in stir fry?" I've been asked. I'm not really sure whether this recipe tastes exactly like your traditional soy-sauce based stir fry or not--you'd have to be the one to tell me since I can't eat soy sauce and don't really know what it "tastes like" in the first place. But regardless of whether you can tolerate soy in your diet this is a satisfying hearty dish with plenty of flavor, and much enjoyed by everyone I've served it to.
                                 --Jessica

Ingredients: (ordered by order added to pan)

• Olive oil (estimated 1 to 2 tablespoons)
• BBQ Sauce (I like Hunt's Honey Hickory BBQ Sauce because it doesn't have soybean oil or large amounts of preservatives in its ingredients)
• Boneless skinless chicken (~1/2 lb. "chicken tenders" or equivalent)
• 1/2 of a large sweet/yellow onion (sliced into long skinny strips)
• 3-4 large mushrooms (sliced) (~1/4 lb.)
• 1/3 to 1/2 lb. green beans (sliced into 1 to 2" segments)
• 1/2 of a whole bell pepper (or 1/3 red or orange pepper + 1/3 green or yellow pepper) chopped
• (optional) 2-3 stalks of green onions (sliced)

Seasonings: (ordered most to least, add to taste, don't skimp)

• Pepper
• Salt
• Paprika
• Sage*
• Oregano*
• Thyme*
• Cayenne

*or use a combined "italian seasoning" instead of these

Directions:

Heat up a medium (~10") fry pan to medium heat. Add enough olive oil to coat pan/chicken. Chop up boneless skinless chicken into bite sized pieces (I like skinny long slices as they cook faster).
 
Add the chicken to the pan. Chop up the onion while the chicken cooks. Stir/flip chicken occasionally so that it cooks evenly. Add seasonings and a couple globs of bbq sauce when the chicken is about half way cooked.
 
When the chicken appears to be cooked through, taste the chicken and add more seasoning if it is not flavorful enough. And then add the onion. Slice the mushrooms and add those as well. Then add more bbq sauce until the onions and mushrooms have a thin layer of sauce on them. The onions and the mushrooms want to be cooked the longest of the vegetables so that they are slightly singed and browned when the whole dish is done. Stir occasionally.
 
Chop the green beans, removing the tips, and then add the green beans to the pan. Add more seasonings and bbq sauce so that the green beans get a light coating of seasoning and sauce like everything else in the pan already. Stir occasionally.
 
Chop the peppers and add to pan, stir so that they mix in evenly and get lightly covered in bbq sauce and spices. Add more if no seasonings/sauce sticks to the peppers. Chop and add the green onions as well at this point if you are adding them.
 
Cook until the vegetables are cooked through and not crunchy/raw, stirring occasionally. Usually the last ingredient to be cooked sufficiently is the green beans, so I usually pull one out to taste occasionally when I think it is getting near done. Its okay to let it cook a couple minutes extra after everything is cooked through.

Serving Suggestions:

Quantities and pan sized listed serves two people just about right. Meal suggestion: serve
with french bread or muffins on the side.