Chinese · Main · Medium
Kung Pao Chicken
Sichuan's sweet, sour, and numbing chicken. Velveted pieces and roasted peanuts caramelized in a screaming wok with dried chiles.
The whole recipe in 60 seconds
Kung Pao Chicken, in 5 ideas
- Thighs, not breast. Thighs stay juicy through the high heat. Breast dries out before the sauce has a chance to coat it.
- Do not skip the black vinegar. It is the sour in sweet-sour, with a malty depth that white vinegar cannot match. Find it at any Asian market.
- Toast the Sichuan peppercorns. Thirty seconds in the hot wok wakes up the numbing tingle. That buzzing sensation is the whole point of Sichuan food.
- Control the heat with the chiles. Break a few open for more fire, leave them whole for milder. You can always pick them out at the table; they are flavor, not meant to be eaten.
- The sauce should cling, not pool. If it looks soupy, let it reduce another 30 seconds. Every piece should glisten, with nothing sitting at the bottom of the wok.
What you need
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
- 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- For the sauce: 2 tbsp black vinegar, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp cornstarch, 2 tbsp water
- 8 to 10 dried red chiles
- 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
- 1/2 cup roasted peanuts
- 3 scallions, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 3 cloves garlic, sliced
- 1 inch ginger, minced
- 3 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil
- Steamed rice, to serve
How to make it
Directions
- Toss the chicken with the Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, and cornstarch. This is velveting; it keeps the chicken juicy in the fierce heat. Marinate 15 minutes.
- Stir the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl and set it by the stove. Once the wok is hot, there is no time to measure.
- Heat the wok over the highest heat until it just starts to smoke. Add the oil, swirl, then add the chicken in a single layer. Sear without moving for a minute, then stir fry until just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Remove to a plate.
- In the same wok, add the dried chiles and Sichuan peppercorns. Stir fry 30 seconds until fragrant and the chiles darken slightly. Do not burn them.
- Add the garlic, ginger, and scallion whites. Stir fry 30 seconds, then return the chicken to the wok.
- Pour in the sauce. It will sizzle and thicken almost immediately. Toss everything for a minute until the sauce caramelizes and clings to each piece.
- Off the heat, fold in the peanuts and scallion greens. Serve immediately over steamed rice.
Have everything ready before the wok gets hot. Kung pao cooks in under 5 minutes once it starts. Chopped, measured, and within arm's reach, or it does not work.