Kung Pao Chicken

Name: Kung Pao Chicken
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 8 min
Total time: 23 min
Yield: 1 serving
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients: 180 g boneless chicken thigh; 1 tsp Shaoxing rice wine; 3 tsp light soy sauce; 2 tsp cornflour; 1 tbsp Chinkiang black vinegar; 0.5 tsp dark soy sauce; 2 tsp caster sugar; 1 tbsp water; 1 tbsp groundnut oil; 8 dried red chillies; 0.5 tsp Sichuan peppercorns; 2 garlic cloves; 1 tsp fresh ginger; 2 spring onions; 30 g roasted unsalted peanuts

The classic Sichuan stir-fry of diced chicken with dried chillies, Sichuan pepper and peanuts, bound in a glossy sweet-sour-savoury sauce built on Chinkiang black vinegar. Fast, fiery and fragrant — cook it hot and serve it straight from the wok with steamed rice.

Lunch & dinner 25g+ protein 8g+ fibre Under 30 min

23 min15 prep · 8 cookMedium740 kcalper serving

Method

Cut 180 g of boneless chicken thigh into even 2 cm dice and put it in a bowl with 1 tsp of light soy sauce, 1 tsp of Shaoxing wine and 1 tsp of cornflour. Mix with your fingers until the cornflour disappears and the meat feels tacky, then leave to marinate for 15 minutes at room temperature.
While the chicken marinates, whisk the sauce in a small bowl: 1 tbsp of Chinkiang black vinegar, 2 tsp of light soy sauce, 0.5 tsp of dark soy sauce, 2 tsp of caster sugar, 1 tsp of cornflour and 1 tbsp of water. Stir until no lumps remain and set beside the hob.
Snip 8 dried red chillies in half with scissors and shake out most of the seeds so they perfume rather than scorch. Thinly slice 2 garlic cloves and 1 tsp of ginger, and cut 2 spring onions into 2 cm lengths, keeping the white sections separate from the green. Have 30 g of peanuts within reach — everything must be ready before the wok goes on.
Set a wok over high heat until it just begins to smoke, then add 1 tbsp of groundnut oil and swirl to coat. Drop in the chillies and 0.5 tsp of Sichuan peppercorns and stir for 10–15 seconds, until the chillies darken a shade and the air turns sharply fragrant. Do not let them blacken.