Kung Pao Chicken

🥘 Introduction
🥘 Snapshot
🥘 Introduction
🥘 Ingredients
🥘 Method
🥘 Notes & Tips
🥘 Variations
🥘 Make-Ahead & Storage
🥘 Footer blurb

Introduction

Snapshot

  • Serves: 3–4
  • Time: 10 min prep • 15 min marinate • 8–10 min cook • ~30–35 min total
  • Good for: weeknights, “fakeaway”, crowd-pleasing spice

Introduction

Kung Pao Chicken is a Sichuan favourite built on contrast: tender chicken, crunchy peanuts, fragrant dried chillies and a glossy, tangy-savvy sauce. This version keeps the ingredients accessible while preserving the dish’s signature trio — sweet, savoury, spicy — and that gentle Sichuan pepper tingle.

Ingredients

Chicken & Marinade

  • 500 g chicken thigh or breast, diced 2 cm
  • 1 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine (or dry sherry)
  • 1 tsp cornflour
  • ¼ tsp bicarb soda (optional, for tenderness)

Stir-fry

  • 2 tbsp neutral oil (peanut/vegetable)
  • 8–12 dried red chillies, cut in 2–3 pieces (shake out seeds to reduce heat)
  • 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns, lightly crushed (optional but classic)
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp fresh ginger, finely grated
  • 1 red capsicum, diced 2 cm
  • 3 spring onions, whites in 2 cm pieces, greens sliced for garnish
  • 60 g roasted unsalted peanuts (about ⅓ cup)

Sauce (mix in a cup)

  • 1 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp dark soy sauce (or use 2 tbsp regular soy total)
  • 1 tbsp Chinkiang black vinegar (or rice vinegar)
  • 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 100 ml chicken stock
  • 1 tsp cornflour mixed with 1 tbsp cold water (slurry)
  • ½ tsp sesame oil (optional)

Method

  1. Marinate: Combine chicken with soy, Shaoxing, cornflour (and bicarb if using). Toss well and rest 15 min.
  2. Heat wok: Set a wok or large frying pan over high heat until very hot. Add 1 tbsp oil.
  3. Fragrance: Stir-fry dried chillies and Sichuan peppercorns 30–45 sec until the chillies darken slightly and smell toasty (do not burn). Push to the side.
  4. Chicken: Add remaining 1 tbsp oil. Stir-fry chicken in a single layer 2–3 min until lightly browned, then toss 1–2 min more until just cooked.
  5. Aromatics & veg: Add garlic, ginger, spring onion whites and capsicum. Stir-fry 1–2 min.
  6. Sauce: Give the sauce a stir, pour in; when it bubbles, add the cornflour slurry. Toss 30–60 sec until glossy and just thickened.
  7. Finish: Stir in peanuts and sesame oil (if using). Remove from heat. Scatter spring onion greens.
  8. Serve: Plate immediately with steamed rice.

Notes & Tips

  • Heat control: Remove most chilli seeds for milder heat; keep them in for a livelier dish.
  • Velveting: The tiny ¼ tsp bicarb helps tenderness — don’t exceed it, and keep the marination short.
  • Wok care: If things scorch, reduce heat slightly and add a splash of stock to loosen the fond.
  • Allergy swap: Use cashews (60 g) instead of peanuts if preferred.

Variations

  • Aussie-pantry swap: If you lack dark soy, use 2 tbsp regular soy; add ½ tsp molasses or brown sugar for colour.
  • Veg & tofu: Replace chicken with 400 g firm tofu (pressed and cubed); brown well before saucing.
  • Extra veg: Add 100 g sliced mushrooms or 1 small courgette with the capsicum.
  • Gluten-free: Use tamari instead of soy; choose a GF hoisin or add 1 tsp extra sugar + ½ tsp five-spice.

Make-Ahead & Storage

  • Prep ahead: Sauce mixed and chicken marinated up to 4 h (without bicarb) or 30 min (with bicarb).
  • Leftovers: Cool quickly; refrigerate up to 1 day. Reheat in a pan over medium heat with a splash of water; nuts will soften.

Footer blurb

“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.” — Virginia Woolf

 

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