Kung Pao Chicken

Ingredients

Chicken

• 450 g boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2 cm (3/4 in) cubes
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp cornflour (cornstarch)
• 1 tsp cooking oil

Sauce

• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp dark soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tbsp black vinegar (Chinkiang), or rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp cornflour (cornstarch)
• 3 tbsp water

Stir-fry

• 2 tbsp cooking oil
• 10–15 dried red chillies, halved and seeds shaken out
• 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
• 3 cloves garlic, sliced
• 2.5 cm (1 in) piece ginger, sliced
• 4 spring onions, white parts cut into 2 cm (3/4 in) pieces, green parts sliced
• 70 g (1/2 cup) roasted unsalted peanuts

Method

1. Mix the chicken with the soy sauce, cornflour and oil. Set aside for 15 minutes while you prepare everything else.
2. Stir all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl until the sugar and cornflour dissolve.
3. Heat the oil in a wok over medium heat. Add the chillies and Sichuan peppercorns and stir for 30–45 seconds, until the chillies darken slightly and smell toasty. Do not let them turn black.
4. Turn the heat to high and add the chicken. Spread it out, leave it for 1 minute to sear, then stir-fry for 3–4 minutes until cooked through.
5. Add the garlic, ginger and spring onion whites and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
6. Stir the sauce again, pour it in and toss for 30–60 seconds until it thickens and coats the chicken. Turn off the heat, stir in the peanuts and spring onion greens, and serve with rice.

Tips

• Heat level: the chillies are there for fragrance. Use 6–8 for a milder dish and don't eat them whole unless you like it very hot.
• Sichuan pepper: it gives a tingling, numbing effect rather than heat. Leave it out if you can't find it; the dish is still good.
• Breast meat: chicken breast works too; stir-fry for 1 minute less so it stays tender.
• No rice wine: traditional versions use rice wine in the marinade. It is left out here, so the dish is alcohol-free.