Kung Pao Chicken (宫保鸡丁) in Chinese is a stir-fried dish with chicken cubes, dried chili pepper and deep-fried peanuts. The tender taste of the chicken matches great with the crispy peanuts with a combined sweet, sour and spicy taste.
Background of the dish
The name of Kung Pao comes from a court official Ding Baozhen in Qing dynasty. The hero official Ding is a foodie who especially loves stir-fried diced chicken. During the time of being served as governor in Sichuan province, he frequently treats his guest with this dish and add dried chili peppers because People in Sichuan loves to eat hot chili. Later on, he is granted the title Taizi Shaobao also known as Kung Pao, which means the protector of the crown price. People name this dish after him to memory him.In China, chefs usually use chicken thighs to make this dish rather than boneless chicken breasts. The meat of thighs is tenderer but requires more about the cutting skills.
I made this world wide famous Kung Pao chicken every month. I know that it is all loved Chinese food by people around the world. The aroma bought by the combination of chili pepper flakes and Sichuan peppercorn is so fragrant. Kung Pao series dish is considered as one of the most popular one in Sichuan cuisine. Besides chicken, we also have Kung Pao Shrimp, Kung Pao tofu and my own creation: kong pao cauliflower etc.
Cook’s Note
- About the sauce, the amount of cornstarch used in the mixed stir fry sauce (碗芡) can be slightly different based on the very single dish. For example, in this kung pao chicken, only a small amount is enough since the chicken cubes is coated with starch in the marinating process. In other veggie kung pao dishes, more cornstarch is needed to make the sauce thicker and consequently can attach to the main ingredients.
- Key step of this dish is to be quick and accurate. Transfer the chicken cubes to the edges of the wok (no heat part) until they begins to change color to get the tenderest chicken meat. And be quick after adding the stir frying sauce.
Ingredients
- 2 chicken legs, cut into small cubes
- ½ cup of fried peanuts (or salt baked ones)
- 2 leek onion (only white part), cut into small section.
- 6~8 dried chili peppers (change the amount according how hot you wish it to be)
- 3 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 teaspoon whole Sichuan peppercorn ( or you can use Sichuan peppercorn powder )
- 1 tablespoon Chinese chili oil
- pinch of salt
- a small pinch of salt
- 2 tsp. dark soy sauce (for coloring)
- 1 tbsp.cooking wine
- 2 tsp. cornstarch
- ½ tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- a small pinch of salt (around 1/3 tsp.)
- 1 inch ginger grated
- 1 tablespoon chopped green onion
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 tsp.cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 teaspoon sugar
Instructions
If you use chicken thigh: remove the bones by cutting a break on the top and then push the meat off with the help of a sharp knife. 
Cut the meat into long strips and further into one bite cubes.
Transfer the chicken to a large bowl and marinating with salt, soy sauce, cooking wine and cornstarch. This helps to add a basic taste and create a protecting shell for the chicken so we can produce the tenderest chicken.
Then cut the leek onion into 1cm sections, slice ginger and garlic.
Heat up oil in wok until hot, pour in cold oil and then heat until warm. Place the chicken cubes in and let them stay for 3-5 seconds until the starch begins gelatinization. Gently fry until all of the chicken cubes begin to change color.
Transfer the chicken cubes to the edges of the wok and empty the center. Add Sichuan peppercorn and dried chili pepper, fry until aromatic. Place in garlic, ginger and half of the scallion sections. Quickly fry to mix well.
Stir the sauce and pour in.
Fry until the sauce is well coated. Mix with the remaining leek onion white sections and fried peanuts. Transfer out immediately.
You will get the tenderest Kung Pao chicken.
Other hot Sichuan dishes
- 2 chicken legs , remove skin and cut into small cubes (around 150g to 200g)
- ½ cup fried peanuts , you may use roasted peanuts or salt baked ones
- 2 leek onion , only white part, cut into small section.
- 6 ~8 dried chili peppers , change the amount according how hot you wish it to be
- 3 tbsp. cooking oil
- 1 tsp. whole Sichuan peppercorn , or you can use Sichuan peppercorn powder
- 1 tbsp. Chinese chili oil
- pinch of salt
- a small pinch of salt
- 2 tsp. dark soy sauce , for coloring
- 1/2 tbsp. cooking wine
- 2 tsp. cornstarch
- 1 tbsp. water
- ½ tbsp. dark soy sauce
- 1 tbsp. light soy sauce
- 1 tsp. a small pinch of salt
- 1 inch ginger grated
- 1 tbsp. chopped green onion
- 2 garlic cloves , finely chopped
- 2 tsp. cornstarch
- 1 tbsp. vinegar
- 2 tbsp. water
- 2 tsp. sugar
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Prepare a small bowl; add all the seasonings for the sauce together.
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If you use chicken thigh: remove the bones by cutting a break on the top and then push the meat off with the help of a sharp knife.
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Cut the meat into long strips and further into one bite size cubes. Transfer the chicken to a large bowl and marinating with salt, soy sauce, water, cooking wine and cornstarch.
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Heat up oil in wok until hot, pour in cold oil and then heat until warm. Place the chicken cubes in and let them stay for 3-5 seconds until the starch begins gelatinization. Gently fry until all of the chicken cubes begin to change color.
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Transfer the chicken cubes to the edges of the wok and empty the center. Add Sichuan peppercorn and dried chili pepper, fry until aromatic. Place in garlic, ginger and half of the scallion sections. Quickly fry to mix well.
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Add the remaining onion sections and pour the sauce in (pre-stir the sauce just before using). At last mix in fried peanuts. Transfer out immediately as long as everything is well combined.
If you are using Sichuan peppercorn powder, add it along with the deep-fried peanuts.
When frying the Sichuan peppercorn, use slow fire and be patient. Over-fried Sichuan peppercorn brings a bitter taste.
Is 1tsp salt for the sauce too much? Can u substitute it with chicken stock instead of water?
Lilian,
Yes, 1 teaspoon of salt is too much for this. I just add a very small pinch and that’s a wrong detail and have already updated this. Yes, you can use chicken stock instead of water.
Great recipe. If you want it to taste like the Gong Bao Jie Ding served in northern China, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of honey, corn syrup or maple syrup to the dish before serving.
Wow…… finally i will stop calling my favorite chinese restaurant. I definitely will cook it. Thank you…..if i want to add meat and shrimp, when i i mix it?
Thank you Noemi. Sure, you can try to mix shrimp and chicken together.
Hello, it says 3 table spoon of cooking oil and 4 tablespoons of cooking oil. Which is the chilli oil? And do I first use 4 tablespoons heat up and then add the 3 tablespoons? Sorry if this is a stupid question.
Greetings out of the Netherlands.
Sorry Mark. I made a serious mistake.
Actually, you need to heat 3 tablespoons of cooking oil firstly for frying the chicken and only 1 tablespoon of chili oil to lighten the color.
Thanks a lot! With the update on your recipe I have just made it! I had a lot of soy sauce because of the marinate, do you actually throw the marinade in the wok or just try to put the chicken in without it?
Anyway this was my first recipe in my wok. Before using this wok I used a western wok with a nonstick coating. I love this new pan so much more it’s only 1mm thick so it fires up really fast! I think this recipe really is a keeper! I disliked the dried chili’s though it has a weird texture so next time I’ll just fish them out. Or I’ll try adding in one or two fresh ones?
Thanks a lot for the help and I’ll be sure to keep watching your blog.
I just ran across your website a few days ago and you have done a great job on it. This was an excellent version of Kung Pao chicken. So much better than the mild sweetened up versions found typically in the states. I added a few more dried chilies and sichuan peppercorns and it was just about perfect. I’m looking forward to cooking your tofu with black bean sauce tonight.
Thanks, Robert.
Thank you Robert. Most of my recipes are authentic Chinese version. In general, the real Chinese version is less sweet than American version. I even found Sichuan dishes in Shanghai are quite sweet and less spicy too. Dishes are always customized locally.
Happy Cooking and I hope you love the tofu with black bean sauce version too.
One small but powerful word of advice: teaspoon, not tablespoon when adding Szechuan pepper 😂 my mouth is still numb! Very very tasty, though. I’ll make this again; only properly…
😂 I am so sorry for your numbed mouth, Matt! I searching about the Sichuan pepper, but only find teaspoon, no tablespoon. Can you specify which line lead you to this mistake.
Thank you so much for the recipe. What type of vinegar should be used?
Chinese black vinegar.
Yum. We sometimes add douboujang and maybe sesame oil to sauce as well. We also added celery, some fresh chili peppers in addition to dried, and dried black mushrooms. A flavor and texture explosion. Delicious
Can’t wait to have a go at feeding guests with homemade Chinese Cuisine
Happy cooking, Roland.
You say: “Then cut the leek onion into 1cm sections, slice ginger and garlic.”
Is this the ginger and garlic from the mixed sauce? The ingredients list says “grated ginger” and “finely chopped garlic” but here you say to slice them. There is no ginger or garlic listed for the main ingredients. I am so confused.
The ginger here is cooked before adding the chicken for aroma. Different from the grated in the sauce.