Recipes around the world: Chicken with Peanuts and Scallions in Hot Pepper Sauce (Kung Pao Chicken)
I was treated to a feast this past weekend, and one dish in particular had me nodding in pleasure as I chomped down on my meal: a spicy blend of carefully seasoned chicken with peanuts and scallions (above pic). I ate mine with pineapple fried rice, a delicious eating experience! In America, Kung Pao chicken is the name commonly used for different variations of this meal. Shout out to the Soup Dumpling Plus restaurant in Fort Lee, who treated my family and I to a feast fit for kings and queens. If you’re ever in the Fort Lee/Englewood Cliffs area in NJ, I highly recommend you check them out! Also, shout out to Clare and her awesome website, The Colors of Yum for the recipe below! Please check out and subscribe to Clare’s website, she makes some awesome food!
Let’s get to it:
Ingredients
- 1 lb of boneless skinless chicken breast or thigh cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- Marinate chicken with:
A pinch of kosher salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp rice wine
1 egg white - Stir fry sauce:
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp + 1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp chicken stock or water
1 tbsp rice wine
1/2 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp dark soy sauce
Combine all the ingredients and set aside.
Process:
- Stir Fry
10 Chinese small dried chilies cut into 1 inch length, seeds removed
1 tsp sichuan peppercorns
5 cloves of garlic minced
1 tbsp minced ginger
3–4 spring onions, white and light green parts cut into 1/4 inch,
Green parts cut into 1 inch
1/2 cup dry roasted peanuts
1 tbsp black vinegar - Directions
Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wok over hight heat until smoking. Add chicken and stir to brown evenly. Cook until chicken turns opaque then transfer to a plate. Heat 1.5 tbsp of oil over medium high heat. Add in garlic, ginger, spring onion white parts, sichuan peppercorns, dried chillies and cook until fragnant, about 10–15 seconds. - Stir in chicken and cook for 1 minute. Give the sauce a quick stir and add in wok. Quickly stir to coat and cook until thicken. Turn off heat, add in peanuts, spring onion green parts, black vinegar and stir to mix. Serve immediately.
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