Kung pao chicken

I adore kung pao chicken – the hotter and more mouth numbing it is, the better I like it. However, the rest of the family don’t share my tolerance for hot food.

To make kung pao chicken the whole family can enjoy, I use a few dried chillies for base heat when cooking, remove the girls’ portions, then stir through additional fresh chillies for the grown-ups.

Kung pao chicken
(serves 4)

• 500g skinless, boneless chicken thigh fillets
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 Tb light soy sauce
• 1 tsp dark soy sauce
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 1 Tb Chinese black vinegar
• 1 Tb Shaoxing rice wine
• 2 tsp sugar
• ½ tsp sesame oil
• 1 Tb water
• 1 tsp Szechuan pepper
• 1 Tb sunflower oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, minced
• 6-12 dried red chillies (or to taste)
• 3 green onions, whites sliced thinly crosswise, greens cut in short lengths
• ¾ cup peanuts

1. Chop the chicken into bite-sized pieces, toss with the baking soda and set aside.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, cornstarch, black vinegar, Shaoxing wine, sugar, sesame oil and water.
3. Heat a wok over a medium flame, and dry fry the Szechuan peppercorns until fragrant. Tip into a mortar and pestle and crush lightly.
4. Add the sunflower oil to the wok and increase the heat.
5. Fry the garlic, ginger, dried chillies, and white parts of the onion for 30 seconds.
6. Add the chicken and fry for five minutes, until almost cooked through.
7. Add the Szechuan peppercorns and sauce and stir until the sauce thickens. If it seems too thick, add a bit of water.
8. Add the peanuts and green parts of the onion, and fry for another minute to heat through.
9. Serve with steamed jasmine rice.

Tags: Asian food, Chinese food