Kung Pao Chicken

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Take out dash Kung Pao Chicken with marinated wimp, the signature sweet-sour-salty Kung Pao sauce with the addictive prickling heat from szechwan pepper .
It ’ s an plosion of big, BIG flavours – and it ’ s a actually quick and easily recipe .
Close up of Kung Pao Chicken with Kung Pao Sauce, fresh off the stove

Reading: Kung Pao Chicken

Kung Pao Chicken

Kung Pao Chicken is a taiwanese takeout favored that is mouthwateringly thoroughly and highly addictive – so it ’ s a good thing it ’ mho easy to make at home plate so we don ’ t need to regulate takeout every time we crave it ! ! We love the strong season sweet-sour-savoury sauce with the signature prickling of numbing heat from the Sichuan pepper !
If you ’ ra wondering whether Kung Pao Chicken is authentic Chinese, the cup of tea as we know it outside of China is a slenderly occidentalize version of an authentic taiwanese Sichuan dish .
traditionally in China, Kung Pao Chicken is a dry stir fry. Which means, unlike 99 % of early asian stimulate fries on my locate like Chop Suey and Cashew Chicken, it ’ s not swimming in loads of sauce .
But with Kung Pao Chicken, the sauce is identical intense flavoured so you don’t need loads of it. When it mixes in with the rice, just a bit of sauce goes a farseeing direction .
Kung Pao Chicken served over rice, ready to be eaten

What goes in Kung Pao Chicken

Most of these ingredients are pretty mainstream asian cook ingredients. I ’ ve provided substitutes for the chinese cooking wine in the recipe .
The ingredients I describe in a little more detail below are :

  • szechwan pepper
  • chinese vinegar
  • Dried chillies

I like to use chicken thigh  because it ’ second juicier than front and tenderloin. If I make this with chicken breast, I always tenderise it using a taiwanese restaurant proficiency using baking sodium carbonate ( bi-carb ). It ’ south extremely simpleton, see directions here : How to Velvet Chicken .
Kung Pao Chicken ingredients

Sichuan Pepper

This is the ingredient in Kung Pao sauce that makes it Kung Pao and not merely any type of stir electrocute sauce. I describe it as a little act lemony with a numb spiciness, rather than hot spiciness like about every other chili .
I used to use unharmed peppercorns but nowadays I tend to use pre ground both for the appliance and besides because it ’ randomness finely ground. In contrast, if you grind your own, there tends to be little game bits in it – albeit the season is a bite better .
Best substitute for Sichuan pepper is white pepper .

Dried Chillies

not all dried chillies are created equal and in fact, the same type of chillies can vary in gaminess throughout the year. So for dried chillies, always taste them and make a sagacity call on how much you can handle ! Most of the heat is in the seeds which are removed .
If you truly don ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate think you can handle any chili at all, use them when cooking but don’t eat them.  The chillies add flavour to to sauce so don ’ triiodothyronine skip them .
Dried Chillies for Kung Pao Chicken

What does Kung Pao Sauce taste like?

Kung Pao sauce has a firm relish that is sweet, sour, savory and with the key signature frisson of hotness from Sichuan pepper. It ’ sulfur glossy and thickened with cornstarch / cornstarch, and because it has such a firm relish, this stir child has less sauce than early chinese favourites like Cashew Chicken and Beef and Broccoli .
here ’ s what goes in Kung Pao Sauce :

  • szechwan Pepper – described above
  • chinese Black Vinegar – described below
  • Cornstarch / cornflour – to thicken the sauce
  •  – subs available
  • Soy sauce, carbohydrate and water

Chinese Black Vinegar

Looks like balsamic vinegar and, surprisingly, tastes vaguely like it. available in asian stores and costs only a copulate of dollars for a large bottle. Be certain not to get taiwanese or another asian black vinegar ( some taste completely unlike ), make certain you get taiwanese black vinegar ( read the label ! ) .
If you can ’ t find it, don ’ thymine concern, you can use rice wine vinegar, plain whiten vinegar or even balsamic vinegar. I ’ ve made Kung Pao Sauce so many times and tried it with each of these, and it ’ s actually quite similar .
Chinese black vinegar used for Kung Pao Chicken

Quick to cook

As with most arouse fries, once you start cooking, things move quickly ! It takes about 6 minutes to cook. then do sure you have all ingredients prepared and cook to toss in .
Key Tip: Cook the Kung Pao sauce down until it reduces to a cloying consistency with quite an intense flavor. That ’ s the Kung Pao way ! !
Preparation steps for Kung Pao Chicken
Phew ! I don ’ thyroxine normally end up writing so much stuff about ingredients in a mail ! then I ’ megabyte bless off here and handing over the recipe. Don ’ thymine forget the recipe television below ! I think it ’ mho specially utilitarian to see the consistency of the sauce at the end – it should be midst and honeyed, and intense dark brown color. enjoy ! – Nagi x

More Chinese takeout favourites

Overhead photo of Kung Pao Chicken on a rustic white plate, ready to be served
Close up of Kung Pao Chicken fresh off the stove

WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT

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Close up of Kung Pao Chicken with Kung Pao Sauce, fresh off the stove

Kung Pao Chicken

Author:

Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Prep:

15

mins

Cook:

10

mins

Total:

25

mins

Dinner

Chinese

4.99

from

62

votes

Servings

4

Tap or levitate to scale
Print

Recipe video above. Kung Pao chicken – done right! The flavour of this sauce is very similar to proper restaurant versions, with a great balance of savoury-sweet and sour with the numbing tingle from Sichuan pepper. Use whole Sichuan peppercorns if you have them, otherwise ground is fine (which is what I use).

Ingredients

Chicken

  • 1 pound / 500g chicken second joint , cut into bite size pieces

Sauce

  • 2 tsp cornstarch / cornstarch

  • 1 tbsp light soy sauce sauce ( Note 2 )

  • 1.5 tbsp dark soy sauce sauce ( Note 3 )

  • 2 tbsp chinese black vinegar ( Note 4 )

  • 1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine ( Note 5 )

  • 3 tbsp carbohydrate , any

  • 1/2 tsp sesame vegetable oil

  • 1/3 cup water

Stir Fry

  • 2 tbsp peanut petroleum ( or other cooking vegetable oil )

  • 2 garlic cloves , minced

  • 1 tsp pep , finely chopped

  • 6 – 10 dried chillies ( align to sample ), cut into 2cm/ 3/4 ” pieces, most seeds discarded ( Note 7 )

  • 3 green onions , cut into 2cm/ 3/4 ” pieces, flannel parts separated from green

  • 1.5 tsp ground szechwan peppercorns , adjust to taste ( Note 6 )

  • 3/4 cup whole peanuts ( or 1/2 cup halved ) , roasted unsalted

Instructions

Sauce & Marinade Chicken:

  • Mix cornflour and soy sauce in a small bowl until cornflour is dissolved. Then mix in remaining Sauce ingredients EXCEPT water.

  • Pour 1.5 tbsp Sauce over chicken. Toss to coat, set aside for 10 – 20 minutes.

  • Add water into remaining Sauce.

Stir Fry:

  • Heat oil in wok over high heat. Add garlic, ginger and chillies. Cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant .
  • Add chicken, cook until it turns white, then add the white part of the green onions. Cook until chicken is cooked through – about 2 minutes.

  • Add Sauce and Sichuan pepper. Bring to simmer, mixing constantly, until almost all the sauce reduces to a thick syrup.

  • Just before the end, mix through peanuts and green part of the green onions. Also check spiciness – add more Sichuan pepper if you can handle the heat!

  • Serve immediately with rice – or for a low carb, broken cal choice, try Cauliflower Rice

Recipe Notes:

1. Chicken – I prefer making this with thigh because it’s juicier, but it can be made with breast or tenderloin. If using breast, option to tenderise using the Chinese method so it’s super tender and juicy like you get at Chinese restaurants – see  – I prefer making this with thigh because it ‘s juicier, but it can be made with breast or combat zone. If using breast, option to tenderise using the chinese method acting so it ‘s super tender and fat like you get at chinese restaurants – see How to tenderise chicken the Chinese way (Velveting)
2. Light Soy Sauce is saltier and lighter in color than all purpose soy sauce ( like Kikkoman ). The bottle will have “ lighter soy sauce ” written on it. It ‘s available in bombastic supermarkets – e.g. Coles and Woolworths in Australia. It can be substituted with all determination soy sauce sauce – like Kikkoman .
3. Dark Soy Sauce is much dark in color than Light Soy Sauce has has more flavour. The bottle has “ night soy sauce sauce ” written on the label. This is chiefly to darken the color of the sauce so if you do n’t have it, you can substitute with all aim soy sauce or flush with abstemious soy sauce sauce .
4. Chinese black vinegar for the false is the authentic room of making it. It looks like balsamic vinegar, tastes like it besides but with a flimsy mouth-watering edge. It ‘s available at asian stores and some bombastic supermarkets. Substitute with 1.5 tbsp of rice wine vinegar, or 1 tbsp white vinegar or even a balmy balsamic vinegar ( plain one ) .
Do not use  taiwanese black vinegar ( which is besides sold at some asian grocery store stores ), it tastes like sour Worcestershire sauce and it changes the spirit of this recipe. Bottle label will say “ made in Taiwan ” .
5. Chinese Cooking Wine is also called shaosing / shoaxing wine, is besides called shaosing / shoaxing wine, see here for more information. It ‘s the component that makes recipes sincerely taste like what you get at chinese restaurants .
Substitutions: dry sherry or mirin ( if using mirin, skip the sugar ) or japanese cook sake ( rice wine ). If you ca n’t consume alcohol, then skip it but use chicken broth in place of body of water .
6. Sichuan peppercorns are not that piquant, they sort of make your mouth numb. In a pleasant way ! I used to grind my own but nowadays I just buy ground. If you grind your own, toast them in a dry pan beginning then grind – it will have slenderly better spirit but you get grittiness .
Taste first for spiciness as I find that the spiciness varies. Add more at the end if you want more heat .
They can be purchased at asian grocery store stores, fruit & vegetable stores that stock spices and some supermarkets. In Australia, they can be purchased at Harris Farms. In America, I am told that szechwan capsicum is sold at Wholefoods !
7. Dried chillies: I find that the spiciness of dried chillies drastically differs from stigmatize to brand ! so align this to taste. Cut off a bantam bite of the chili and check how hot it is, then decide how many to use. I typically use 6 dried chillies that are around 6 – 7cm/ 2.5 ” farseeing, deseeded .
8. Nutrition per serve, Kung Pao Chicken only assuming chicken second joint is used. 150 calories of this is attributable to the peanuts .
9. Republished recipe – This Kung Pao Chicken recipe was original posted in April 2016. Recipe has been slenderly modified so there ‘s a touch more sauce – by reader need ! ????

Nutrition Information:

Serving:

195

g

Calories:

555

cal

(28%)

Carbohydrates:

18

g

(6%)

Protein:

28

g

(56%)

Fat:

41

g

(63%)

Saturated Fat:

8

g

(50%)

Cholesterol:

122

mg

(41%)

Sodium:

604

mg

(26%)

Potassium:

480

mg

(14%)

Fiber:

2

g

(8%)

Sugar:

10

g

(11%)

Vitamin A:

185

IU

(4%)

Vitamin C:

2.1

mg

(3%)

Calcium:

34

mg

(3%)

Iron:

1.8

mg

(10%)

Lucky 8: Eight more Chinese takeout favourites

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Category : CHINESE FOOD

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