Legend has it that Kung Pao chicken dish is believed to be named after Ding Baozhen (1820–1886), a late Qing Dynasty official and governor of Sichuan Province in China. It’s traditionally a spicy, stir-fried Chinese dish made with cubes of chicken and peanuts although there are non-spicy variants as well.
Jing Ya Tang, one star MICHELIN of The Opposite House, Beijing, China presents a selection of authentic Chinese dishes at its best. Learn how to make this worldwide favourite dish – Kung Pao Chicken in your very home kitchen.
Kung Pao chicken
Main Ingredients:
- Chicken thigh (20g)
- Diced green onion (50g)
- Cooked peanuts (25g)
- Cooked cashew nuts (25g)
- Sliced garlic (5g)
- Sliced ginger (5g)
- Dried chilli (5g)
Ingredients:
A. Salt (2g), rice wine (5g), sugar (1g), egg (1/3), corn flour (6g)
B. Sugar (30g), salt (3g), rice vinegar (50g), corn flour (10g)
Method:
- Mix and marinate the diced chicken thigh with seasoning (ingredients A).
- Heat the oil in a heated wok first, and fry the marinated chicken and diced green onion until the chicken is cooked.
- Cook the sliced garlic and ginger, fry the red chilli segment first, and then add the cooked chicken and onion. Next, stir-fry the cooked peanuts, cashew nuts and ingredients B.
- Mix well and serve hot with plain steamed rice.
Cooking Tips:
- Cook the fried chicken and diced onion for one minute to elevate the taste.
- Turn off the fire when adding the peanuts and cashew nuts to keep them crispy.