The Best Kung Pao Chicken · i am a food blog

Kung Pao Chicken is so quick and easy to prepare at home that it will become a weeknight dinner favorite in no time.

How to make kung pao chicken

This stir-fry comes together very quickly and easily once you have all the ingredients ready. If you want to do this faster than takeout arrives at your door, prepare everything before you start cooking.

First, prepare rice. Unless you’re smart and make rice in your fridge. So in this case, skip this step because you are already winning in life.
Cut your chicken into bite-sized pieces. Place them in a bowl with the marinade and set aside while you prepare the sauce ingredients.
Prepare the ginger and garlic. Whisk all sauce ingredients in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup. Use a garlic press for garlic and a ginger grater for ginger. Both save a lot of time.
It’s time to cook! It will only take a few minutes: cook the chicken, add the sauce, let reduce a little and that’s it.

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Kung Pao Sauce

Kung Pao sauce is a magical sauce that makes everything taste good! It’s so delicious they sell bottles of it at the store (they even have Panda Express kung pao sauce) but it’s really easy to make at home and store in the fridge. From there, you can add it to randomly clean refrigerator stir-fries and boom, instant kung pao.

To make the kung pao sauce, mix 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon cornstarch, 1/4 cup hoisin sauce, 1/4 cup sambal oelek, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 2 tablespoons tablespoon of sugar, 4 cloves of minced garlic and 1 tablespoon of grated ginger. Cook in a non-stick saucepan over medium heat, stirring, until the sauce becomes thick and glossy. Let cool completely then pour into a clean container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, tightly covered. Add to stir-fries in the last step, once everything is cooked.

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What is Kung Pao Chicken?

Kung Pao Chicken is a classic Chinese stir-fry dish with diced chicken, dried chili peppers and peanuts. It comes from the land of hot and spicy Chinese cuisine, Sichuan. It is also a very popular Americanized Chinese takeout order. Everyone loves kung pao chicken with its tender pieces of chicken and complex sauce with savory, sweet, tangy and spicy flavors.

This particular kung pao is not quite as it is made in Sichuan. In Sichuan, it is dry fried with just a touch of sauce. This kung pao is a saucy riff, more in the style of Chinese American takeaway kung pao. The sauce makes it perfect to accompany rice.

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Kung Pao Chicken Ingredients

Most of the ingredients for this kung pao chicken can be found at your regular grocery store. You need chicken thighs, soy sauce, rice vinegar, cornstarch, sugar, garlic, ginger, green onions and peanuts (or the nut of your choice). The other ingredients can be found at your friendly Asian grocery store, online, or at places like Whole Foods.

Things that are hard to find

Shaoxing wine: It’s the secret ingredient that will make your Chinese cooking taste like restaurant-style Chinese cooking. Shaoxing wine is a sweet, nutty and earthy Chinese rice wine. Learn more about this via our ultimate guide to Shaoxing wine.
Hoisin sauce: Hoisin is now sold almost everywhere, from Target to your basic grocery store. It is a thick, sweet brown sauce that is used in marinades and as a dipping sauce. It’s super tasty: sweet and salty, tangy and full of umami. Hoisin can taste different depending on the brand, and for us, the best brand of hoisin is Lee Kum Kee. Bonus, it comes in a squeeze bottle!
Sambal oelek: It’s not an authentic Sichuan kung pao chicken ingredient, but it packs a fresh chilli and garlic punch.
Whole dried chili peppers: These are completely optional, but if you want your kung pao to look authentic, you have to have dried chili peppers! They sell whole dried Chinese chili peppers online and in Asian grocery stores. We use dried chiles, but you can also substitute the chile de árbol you see in the Mexican aisle. Most people don’t eat dried peppers, but some do, especially if the peppers are high quality, roasted and good.

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Nuts or nut-free?

Peanuts are the classic kung pao nut. The main thing is to fry them a little to enhance their nutty flavor. I opted for a peanut-free kung pao with cashews. If you want, you can add any nuts or leave them out completely. To fry your nuts: heat a little oil in a non-stick pan or wok. Sauté, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes until they begin to smell roasted and delicious. Remove from pan and set aside. If you’re not going to fry your nuts, make sure to use toasted/roasted nuts.

Chicken breast or chicken thighs?

Chicken thighs are superior in this stir-fry because they are very flavorful and contain more fat than breasts. You can also use breasts, just be sure to cook them for less time.

Does this taste like Kung Pao Panda Express Chicken?

This isn’t an ingredient-for-ingredient copycat recipe for Panda Express, but it’s pretty darn close!

Tips and tricks

Cut your chicken into equal pieces. Take the time to cut the chicken into small, even pieces. Cooking will be faster and more uniform.
Velvety your meat. Marinating chicken in Shaoxing wine, soy sauce and cornstarch is called velouting. This adds flavor to the chicken and the cornstarch protects the chicken from too much heat, making it juicier when cooking. This is what gives sautéed meats their silky texture.
Toast the nuts. Toasting nuts brings out their flavors, making them nuttier and crunchier.
Use a non-stick pan. I like to use a nonstick pan because cornstarch tends to stick to regular pans and with a nonstick pan you have the option of not using as much oil. Some people think that non-stick pans are unprofessional because they don’t give you the Maillard (or wok eh, if you go that far) reaction that you would get with a regular pan, but when you’re making stir-fries, not steaks, that’s no problem. Plus, the name of the game is ease and if you have a pan that’s extremely difficult to wash after dinner is finished, it’s not easy. These pans are my favorite.

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What to serve with kung pao chicken

Kung Pao Chicken Recipe

Very addictive and super easy to make at home.

Serves 4

Preparation time 12 minutes

Cooking time 8 minutes

Total duration 20 minutes

Chicken

1 kg chicken thighs cut into bite-sized pieces
1 tablespoon I am willow
1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
1 teaspoon cornflour

Kung Pao Sauce

2 teaspoon cornflour
2 tablespoon I would like
2 tablespoon sambal oelek
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
2 cloves garlic crushed
2 teaspoon ginger grated

Stir-fried

1 tablespoon oil
8-10 dried red peppers if desired
1/4 cup roasted cashews or peanuts
2-3 green onions cut into 2″ lengths

Marinate the chicken thighs in soy sauce, shaoxing wine and 1 teaspoon cornstarch. Set aside time to prepare your sauce.
In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the remaining 2 teaspoons cornstarch with 1/4 cup water, the hoisin, sambal oelek, rice vinegar, sugar, garlic and ginger.
Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring occasionally until browned and cooked through.
Reduce heat to medium, add peppers and sauce and toss to coat. Cook until the sauce begins to thicken and become glossy.
Add the green onions and cashews.
Enjoy hot!