Kung pao chicken
This is classic gutsy Sichuanese stuff. I love the different textures and flavours in this – the crunch of the water chestnuts, the hint of fresh ginger and spring onion, and the sharpness of the chilli. Chicken thigh is much more tender and flavourful than breast; it is also more forgiving when cooked. Good woks are cheap and plentiful in Asian supermarkets. Dahua and Tai Ping in Auckland and Chinatown Market in Christchurch are three of my favourite spots for all things Chinese.
Ingredients:
- 500g chicken thighs, skinless and boneless
- 1 tbsp. light soy sauce
- 3 tbsp. Shaoxing rice wine
- 3 tbsp. sesame oil
- 2 tsp. cornflour
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- Sesame oil
- 100g water chestnuts, sliced
- 1 carrot, thinly sliced
- 3 tbsp. oil
- ½ tsp. salt
- 120g unsalted peanuts, roasted
- 1 spring onion, chopped
- 1 tbsp. ginger, chopped
- 1 tsp. Chinese chilli sauce
- 1 tsp. Sichuan peppercorns
- 1 tbsp. sugar
- 1 tsp. Chinkiang vinegar (black rice vinegar)
- 1 tbsp. chilli paste
- 3 heads bok choy, washed and pulled apart
- Jasmine rice, to serve
Method:
- Cut the chicken into small 3-4cm pieces. Combine the chopped chicken with the soy sauce, rice wine, sesame oil and cornflour in a bowl and leave to marinade for 20 minutes or so.
- Bring the wok to a very high heat. Add some sesame oil and let it heat. Add the marinated chook and let it fry quickly, moving it around the wok. After several minutes of cooking, follow with everything else in quick succession, except the bok choy, and stir around until the chicken is cooked. Add the bok choy and stir around for another minute or two until it has wilted a bit. You want a bit of lovely fresh crunch to it, so it won't need long.
- Serve with jasmine rice. It really needs very little else, with the exception perhaps of a nice cool beer to deal with the heat.
What’s your favourite Chinese dish? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Written by Sam Mannering. First appeared on Stuff.co.nz.
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