Kung Pao Chicken
Kung Pao Chicken — 宫保鸡丁, Gōngbǎo Jīdīng — is a classic dish of Sichuan province, created in honour of Ding Baozhen, the 19th-century governor who held the honorary title Gong Bao (palatial guardian). The dish survived the Chinese Cultural Revolution, during which it was condemned as a symbol of feudalism, and emerged more popular than ever. The four-flavour balance — sour from Chinkiang black rice vinegar, salty from soy sauce, sweet from sugar, and numbing-hot from Sichuan chillies — is what connoisseurs describe as the defining flavour profile of wok cooking.
Sichuan born
Created in 19th-century Sichuan for governor Ding Baozhen — Kung Pao is his title
The sauce trinity
Black vinegar, soy, and sugar must balance: sour, salty, and sweet in equal measure
Peanuts pre-added
Toss in cold roasted peanuts right at the end to preserve their crunch
Wok on maximum
The chicken must sear, not steam — crowd the wok and you lose the char
Ingredients 4 servings
- 500g chicken breast, cut into 2cm cubes
- 100g unsalted roasted peanuts
- 8–10 dried Chinese chili peppers (Sichuan or similar)
- 4 spring onions, cut into 3cm pieces
- 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 2cm piece of ginger, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp Sichuan chili oil or sunflower oil
- Marinade: 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tsp cornstarch, 1 tsp sesame oil
- Sauce: 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp black rice vinegar (Chinkiang), 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp cornstarch, 2 tbsp water
How to make it
- 1Toss chicken with marinade ingredients and leave for 15 minutes.
- 2Combine sauce ingredients in a small bowl.
- 3Heat wok over highest heat until smoking; add oil and fry dried chilis and Sichuan peppercorns 30 seconds until darkened but not black — they should smell toasted, not burnt.
- 4Add chicken pieces and sear 3–4 minutes without stirring, until golden on one side; toss and cook 2 more minutes.
- 5Add garlic, ginger, and the white parts of the spring onion; stir-fry 1 minute.
- 6Pour in the sauce, toss vigorously for 1 minute until thickened and clinging to the chicken.
- 7Throw in peanuts and green spring onion tops; toss 30 seconds.
- 8Serve immediately with jasmine rice.
Nutritional info
per serving (~350 g)
Estimated nutritional values.
Pairs perfectly with
