Lemon Soy Chicken and Broccoli

September in Portland and the light has shifted definitively. The golden slant of late summer is giving way to something softer, more diffuse, the light filtering through the beginning of cloud cover like it is apologizing for leaving. I love September. I love the way the city starts to turn inward, the way the rain returns not as a storm but as a whisper, the way everyone begins the slow migration from patio to kitchen. Cooking season is returning, and I am ready.

I roasted my first kabocha squash of the season this week. Kabocha is the squash I grew up with — Dad grew it in his garden in Sacramento, and Fumiko used it in everything: simmered in dashi, mashed into croquettes, pureed into soup. It is sweeter and denser than American squash, with a chestnut-like flavor that deepens when roasted. I cut it into wedges, drizzled it with sesame oil and a little soy sauce, and roasted it until the edges caramelized. The smell filled the apartment — sweet, earthy, warm — and for twenty minutes I was in Fumiko's kitchen, watching her cut squash with the same knife she has used for forty years.

Miya is six months old. Half a year. She is eating solid food now with increasing interest — sweet potato, rice, avocado, mashed banana. She grabs the spoon and tries to feed herself, which results in food on her face, her hair, the ceiling, and occasionally her mouth. She is determined and messy and alive in a way that makes me realize how much of my own life I spend trying to be clean and controlled. Miya does not control anything. She simply reaches for what she wants. I am trying to learn from her. I am thirty-one years old and my six-month-old is my teacher.

The blog has five hundred regular readers now. A small number, a real number. Five hundred people who come back each week to read what I write about food and motherhood and the quiet work of keeping a life together. I do not take them for granted. Each one is a person sitting somewhere with a screen, choosing to spend time with my words. That choice is a gift I am trying to deserve.

Brian and I had a good week. No arguments. No distance. He came home on time three nights and we ate dinner together at the table, which sounds ordinary but is not. We talked about the weekend. We talked about Miya. We did not talk about the things we should talk about. But we talked. Sometimes that is enough. Sometimes the bridge is built not from grand gestures but from shared meals at a table, the quiet accumulation of ordinary evenings.

The kabocha roasted, the apartment filled with that sweet earthy warmth, and I found myself thinking about the other flavors I reach for when I want to feel held — soy sauce, lemon, the quiet umami of a simple pan sauce that needs nothing extra. Those three dinner-table evenings with Brian this week deserved something like that: uncomplicated, honest, finished in half an hour. Lemon Soy Chicken and Broccoli is the recipe I come back to when I want a meal that says “this is enough” and means it as a gift, not a concession.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 cups broccoli florets
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about 1 large lemon)
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon sesame oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons neutral oil (such as avocado or vegetable)
Salt and black pepper to taste
Cooked white or brown rice, for serving
Sesame seeds and thinly sliced scallions, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

Make the sauce. In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, lemon juice, honey, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, and cornstarch until smooth. Set aside.
Season the chicken. Pat the chicken pieces dry and season lightly with salt and black pepper.
Cook the chicken. Heat the neutral oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the chicken in a single layer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5—6 minutes until golden on the outside and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
Cook the broccoli. In the same skillet over medium-high heat, add the broccoli florets and 2 tablespoons of water. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3—4 minutes until the broccoli is bright green and just tender but still has some bite.
Combine and glaze. Return the chicken to the skillet with the broccoli. Pour the sauce over everything and toss to coat. Cook for 1—2 minutes, stirring, until the sauce thickens and clings to the chicken and broccoli.
Serve. Spoon over warm rice and garnish with sesame seeds and scallions if desired. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Lemon Soy Chicken and Broccoli — The Weeknight Meal That Brings Us Back to the Table