Kung pao chicken 宫保鸡丁

Kung Pao Chicken (宫保鸡丁) is a famous traditional dish from Sichuan cuisine, known for its bold flavours and tantalizing combination of spicy, sweet, and sour. The dish features diced chicken stir-fried with peanuts, dried chili peppers, and Sichuan peppercorns, creating a signature numbing spiciness that Sichuan cuisine is renowned for. The name of the dish is said to honor Ding Baozhen, a governor of Sichuan during the Qing Dynasty, who was bestowed the title "Gong Bao" (Palace Guardian). This dish, with its vibrant flavors and rich history, has become a favorite both in China and internationally, showcasing the essence of Sichuan cuisine.

Ingredients

1. 300g chicken breast
2. 50g peanuts
3. 45g chopped chive or spring onions
4. 10g garlic
5. 10g ginger
6. 8g dried chili (can be bought in many Asian or Chinese supermarket)
7. 1.5g Sichuan pepper (can be bought in many Asian or Chinese supermarket)
8. 60g oil
9. 2 g salt
10. 2g Chinese cooking wine (can be bought in many Asian or Chinese supermarket)
11. 20g Pixian bean paste (a type of spicy bean paste, can be bought in many Asian or Chinese supermarket)
12. 6.5g soy sauce
13. 10 g sugar
14. 7g rice vinegar (can be bought in many Asian or Chinese supermarket)
15. 20 g corn starch

Instructions

1. Dice the chicken breast into pieces and set aside; Dried chili peppers, remove the seeds and cut into small pieces;  cut ginger into small slices; Finely chop the garlic and set aside.
2. Mix the chicken breast well with egg whites, add 1 tablespoon of starch and cooking wine, and marinate for 15 minutes.
3. Pour a little oil in a cold pan and add the peanuts in the pan. Fry the peanuts over low heat until golden brown, remove them and let them cool for later use.
4. Mix sugar, salt, vinegar, soy sauce, and corn starch well for later use.
5. Heat the pot and pour in the oil. Sauté the chicken in the pan. When the chicken turns white, set aside.
6. Leave a little base oil in the pot, first put in Sichuan pepper and dried chili pepper and stir-fry over low heat to bring out the fragrance, then pour the bean paste into the pot and stir-fry the mixture, then put the ginger slices and minced garlic into the pot and stir-fry.
7. Change to high heat, pour the diced chicken into the pan and stir-fry evenly. Put the chopped chive into the pan and stir-fry well.
8. Pour the mixed sauce into a pot and bring to a boil. Add the roasted peanut into the pan.
9. After stir-frying evenly, drizzle a little sesame oil and then remove from the pot to serve.

Note: If you are a vegetarian, you can try to replace the dicked chicken into vegetable pieces.