When you wake up dreaming of Kung Pao chicken and you live in in Essex! Yes, story of my life!! Haha. But the again, why would you buy it when making it at home is so much better. Healthier and definitely cheaper!!
Kung Pao or Kung Po is a very delicious spicy chicken dish which originates from the Sichuan province in China. The Sichuan peppers used in this dish, lip-smacking good! and I promise you that you will have no regrets making this. I even use the leftovers as a base for my fried rice!
This is what you need:
Ingredient:
- 250g boneless chicken thighs/breast – diced
- 3 Tbsp oil
- 8 dried chilles (remove seeds and reduce amount if you don’t like it hot)
- Thumb sized ginger – sliced
- 3 garlic cloves – chopped
- 1 spring onion – chopped
- 1/2 tsp Sichuan peppercorns – ground
- 1/4 cup water + 1 tsp corn flour
- Carrots/Cauliflower/Any veg you have in the fridge!
- Cashew nuts – handful
- Salt – if needed
Marinate the chicken for 30 minutes with the below and set aside:
- 1 tsp cornflour
- 2 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry/dry white wine)
- 1 tsp oil
The sauce (mix together):
- 1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp dark soy sauce
- 1 tsp honey/sugar
- 1 tsp white vinegar
This is how you make it:
- Heat oil up on a medium fire and add the marinated chicken.
- When the chicken is 50% cooked, add the garlic, ginger and half the spring onion.
- Turn down the heat and let that cook for a couple of minutes.
- Then add the chillies, nuts and vegetable. Fry this for 1 minute, and add peppercorns and the sauce (as above). Let this cook for another minute or so.
- Turn the heat back to medium, add the water with cornflour and let the dish thicken.
- Add some sesame seeds and the rest of the spring onions.
This dish is best served hot with some steamed rice. Also lovely with noodles and bread and even tacos!! Trust me, I have tried it all. Always check how spicy your dried chillies are as some batches can be spicier than others. You can add more water if you like more sauce but make sure to check for salt.
Hope you enjoy! Let me know if you have any questions ( :