Kung Pao Chicken

Kung Pao Chicken
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A Little Personal History:

When I go out for Asian or Chinese, my “go to” dish is Kung Pao Chicken. So it only made sense to come up with my own home cooked version. After a lot of trial and error, here’s the end result.

Description:

Kung Pao Chicken (Chinese: 宫保鸡丁), also transcribed as Gong Bao or Kung Po, is a spicy stir-fry dish made with chickenpeanuts, vegetables, and chili peppers.” Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kung_Pao_chicken

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My favorite, "go to" oriental dish. Inexpensive and very easy to make
Chef Lars
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Passive Time 30 minutes
Servings
people
Ingredients
Marinade
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 2 teaspoon cornstarch
Kung Pao Sauce
  • 2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 2 teaspoon cornstarch
Chicken and Vegetables
  • 1 pound chicken breasts cut into cube size pieces
  • 2 tablespoon peanut oil or vegetable oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes adjust to taste
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger or 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
  • 1/2 green bell pepper chopped
  • 1/2 red bell pepper chopped
  • 1/4 cup roasted peanuts
Topping
  • 4 green onions chopped
Side Dish
  • 4 cups white rice steamed
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Passive Time 30 minutes
Servings
people
Ingredients
Marinade
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 2 teaspoon cornstarch
Kung Pao Sauce
  • 2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 2 teaspoon cornstarch
Chicken and Vegetables
  • 1 pound chicken breasts cut into cube size pieces
  • 2 tablespoon peanut oil or vegetable oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes adjust to taste
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger or 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
  • 1/2 green bell pepper chopped
  • 1/2 red bell pepper chopped
  • 1/4 cup roasted peanuts
Topping
  • 4 green onions chopped
Side Dish
  • 4 cups white rice steamed
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Rate this recipe!
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Instructions
Marinade
  1. In a medium bowl, using chopsticks, whisk or wooden spoon, stir in the soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, sesame oil, and cornstarch until the cornstarch is dissolved.
  2. Add the cubed chicken and toss to coat. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Kung Pao Sauce
  1. In a small bowl, combine the balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, and cornstarch. Stir until the cornstarch is dissolved. Set aside.
Stir-Fry Chicken and Vegetables
  1. If not already done, steam rice as you would normally.
  2. In a wok or large skillet, over medium-high heat, add peanut or vegetable oil. Stir in red pepper flakes. Add chopped red and green bell peppers. Cook for 3 - 4 minutes until bell peppers are slightly softened. Add minced garlic, grated ginger and continue stirring for another 1 minute.
  3. Transfer marinated cubed chicken to wok or skillet and stir the chicken and veggies for 4 or 5 minutes or until chicken pieces are no longer pink.
  4. Fold in Kung Pao sauce till chicken and veggies are thoroughly coated. Stir in roasted peanuts and cook for another 1 - 2 minutes.
  5. Transfer Kung Pao Chicken and veggies to a serving plate, sprinkle chopped green onions on top. Serve over steamed white rice.
Recipe Notes

Advanced Preparation:

  • Kung Pao Chicken leftovers are great too! Just re-heat in the microwave. As such, everything can be done in advance and refrigerated till ready to re-heat.

Tips, Notes, and Variations:

  • While you can use boiled rice, steamed rice is the way to go for all things oriental. Just one of many reasons I love my 7 in 1 Instant Pot cooker for perfectly steamed rice every time  🙂