Recipe

Kung Pao Chicken (Gong Bao Ji Ding)

2–3 servings with rice · prep 20 min · cook 5 min stir-fry

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• lunch
• dinner
• chinese

Authored by the maintainer; classical Sichuan home method — *ma-la* balanced, peanuts toasted, dark vinegar at the end.

Ingredients

the protein

• 400 g boneless skinless chicken thigh, cut into 2 cm cubes
• 100 g roasted unsalted peanuts

the marinade

• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine (for the marinade)
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce — Yuasa shoyu brewery
• 1 tbsp cornstarch (for marinade) + 1 tsp (for the sauce slurry)

the aromatics

• 10 dried red chiles (Tianjin or chiles de árbol), broken in half — Mexican dried-chile farm
• 1.5 tsp Sichuan peppercorns, lightly toasted — Hanyuan Sichuan peppercorn farm
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced — Tropea allium farm
• Thumb of ginger, sliced into 5 mm coins
• 4 scallions, white parts only, cut into 2 cm lengths (greens reserved for garnish)

the sauce

• 1.5 tbsp Chinkiang black vinegar
• 1 tsp dark soy sauce
• 2 tsp sugar
• 60 ml chicken stock or water

the finish

• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil

the cook

• 3 tbsp neutral oil

Method

1. Marinate the chicken with Shaoxing, soy, and 1 tbsp cornstarch for 15 minutes. · 15 min
2. Mix the sauce: in a small bowl, whisk together Chinkiang vinegar, dark soy, sugar, stock, and 1 tsp cornstarch. Set aside.
3. Heat the wok over high heat until smoking. Add 2 tbsp neutral oil. Add the dried chiles and Sichuan peppercorns. Stir 20 seconds until the oil turns red and the smell is intense — *not* black; black means burnt. · 0 min
4. Add the chicken in a single layer. Don't stir for 30 seconds — let it sear. Then stir-fry 2 minutes until just cooked through. · 2 min
5. Push to one side. In the cleared space, add the remaining 1 tbsp oil, the garlic, ginger, and scallion whites. Stir-fry 30 seconds. · 1 min
6. Add the peanuts. Toss everything together for 15 seconds.
7. Pour in the sauce. It will thicken almost immediately to a glossy coat. Toss for 30 seconds. · 1 min
8. Off heat. Stir in sesame oil and scatter scallion greens. Plate. Serve immediately with rice.

Notes

Kung Pao chicken — *gong bao ji ding* — is named for Ding Baozhen, a
Qing-dynasty governor of Sichuan whose title was *gong bao* (palace
guardian). The dish was supposedly his favourite home cook's
improvisation in the 1860s. The dish went from regional Sichuan
staple to international Chinese-restaurant menu standard by the 1970s,
often Westernised heavily — the sweet-sticky red orange-glazed
version most American takeout serves is essentially a different dish.

The traditional Sichuan version is *mala* (numbing-spicy), bone-dry
in sauce, and emphasises the dried chiles and peppercorns over the
sweetness. The dish your Chinatown takes calls *kung pao* is a
different recipe in spirit.

Diners eat around the dried chiles and whole peppercorns — they're
aromatics, not food.