Tender chicken marinated in a seasoned egg wash, homemade kung pao sauce, and paired with lots of stir fried vegetables like zucchini, red bell pepper, and onions, and then garnished with peanuts. This Panda Express Kung Pao Chicken recipe is full of flavor and tastes just like the chinese restaurant version but with a homemade kung pao sauce.
Most all of us love Chinese take out. And everybody has their favorite dishes to order -- orange chicken, crispy chicken teriyaki, beef and broccoli, fried rice. One of my favorite dishes is most definitely Kung Pao (also written Kung Po) chicken which is a staple in westernized chinese cuisine.
I love the spice that this stir fried chicken dish has! The vegetables here are some of my favorites. Tender zucchini pieces soak up the delicious sauce. Onions and red bell pepper add sweetness and flavor. The peanuts are browned alongside the dried red chilis and begin to soften as they cook.
Velveting: A Chinese Method of Cooking
Velveting is a method of cooking that helps to preserve moisture in the meat. Baking Powder and/or cornstarch is combined with rice wine vinegar or Shaoxing cooking wine and then used to coat the meat before cooking in water or oil. This velveting mixture is applied to the meat like a marinade and then the meat is either stir-fried, blanched, deep-fried, etc. By doing this the protein fibers do not seize up, and the meat remains tender. This technique is used on chicken in this kung pao recipe, but can also be used on shrimp, beef, or pork.
Kung Pao Chicken Ingredients
Here are some of the main components of kung pao stir fry that make it special!
Chicken: You can use chicken breast or chicken thighs here, both are delicious. Just make sure it is boneless, skinless as you will be cutting it up into chicken cubes.
Chinese Wine (Shaoxing Wine): This is a main component of the velveting process. You can substitute in rice wine vinegar or plain vinegar. A dry sherry wine would also work. From what I have read, Panda Express puts a bit of chinese wine in most of their dishes!
Dry red chilis: Dried chili peppers give heat to this spicy dish. The recipe calls for 10 dried chilis for medium heat level, but feel free to add more or less depending on your spice tolerance.
Zucchini: Tender and green, zucchini add color to the dish and soak up all of that delicious kung pao sauce.
Red Bell Peppers: Can't beat that red color and sweetness!
Peanuts: The roasted peanuts are dry sauteed alongside the dry chilis for a quick minute to bring out some of the natural oils and make them fragrant. Once the peanuts cook in the kung pao sauce, they begin to soften and soak up that spicy goodness!
How to make Panda Express Kung Pao Chicken
Begin by combining the chicken marinade ingredients that will be used for velveting the chicken. Stir together vegetable oil, cornstarch, egg, salt, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar in a medium sized bowl and add diced raw chicken. Allow chicken to marinate in the fridge for 30-60 minutes.
While chicken is marinating, cut up your zucchini, bell pepper, onions, and green onions into small bite-sized pieces. I like to use both the whites and the green parts of the green onions.
Prepare your kung pao sauce by whisking together minced garlic, water, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, oyster sauce, grated ginger, and cornstarch. Set to the side.
Heat wok or large stir fry pan on medium-high heat and add additional 1 tbsp. of oil. Add coated chicken pieces and stir fry until they start to brown on the outside and are almost cooked through, 8-10 minutes.
Remove chicken to a side plate and add final tablespoon of oil. Turn heat to high and add in zucchini, bell pepper, onion, and green onion. Stir fry quickly on high heat for 4-5 minutes and then remove to the side next to the chicken.
To the empty wok, add dried chilis and peanuts and cook until peppers are fragrant (1-2 minutes). The peanuts will get a little color to them as well.
Stir in kung pao sauce and allow to thicken and deepen in color for 1-2 minutes.
Add back in vegetables and chicken pieces and stir to coat. Cook until sauce is thickened and the chicken is cooked through.
Tip
Like with most stir-fry style dishes, the cooking goes quickly so it's a good idea to have all of your ingredients prepared before you turn on the heat. I find that utilizing the time that the chicken is marinating in the fridge to prepare the veggies and sauce is the way to go.
Is Kung Pao Chicken Gluten Free?
Most of the time kung pao chicken sauce is thickened with cornstarch and so it is gluten free. This Panda Express Kung Pao Chicken Copycat recipe is gluten free. If you ever decide to make kung pao chicken with a store bought kung pao sauce, be sure to read the ingredients carefully to ensure it is truly gluten free.
Kung Pao Chicken vs. Szechuan Chicken
It's no secret that we are spicy food fans here at the Season and Thyme household (hello Spicy Basil Chicken) and Kung Pao chicken has a great kick (or pow) to it.
Kung Pao chicken generally consists of stir fried chicken, vegetables, peanuts, and hot peppers. True kung pao chicken has sichuan or szechuan peppercorns to provide that spicy heat! You can find these peppers are asian super markets or grocery stores if you want your dish to be truly authentic. Kung pao chicken has vegetables like zucchini, bell pepper, carrots, and onions tossed in a spicy brown sauce.
Szechuan Chicken comes from the region of Sichuan in China. Although Szechuan chicken can have vegetables, it is more often a spicy chicken dish with sichuan peppercorns and dried chilis.
Panda Express Kung Pao Chicken Copycat
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs. chicken
- 2 tbsp. vegetable oil divided
- 2 tbsp. Cornstarch
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. sesame oil
- 2 tbsp. Shaoxing Wine or rice wine vinegar
Kung Pao Sauce
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ¼ cup water
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- 2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp. brown sugar
- 1 tbsp. oyster sauce
- 1 tsp. grated ginger
- 1 tbsp. cornstarch
Kung Pao Vegetables
- 2 red bell peppers
- 2 green zucchini
- ¼ cup green onions
- 1 small onion
- ½ cup peanuts
- 10 whole dry chilis
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Instructions
- Begin by combining the chicken marinade ingredients that will be used for velveting the chicken. Stir together vegetable oil, cornstarch, egg, salt, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar in a medium sized bowl and add diced raw chicken. Allow chicken to marinate in the fridge for 30-60 minutes.
- While chicken is marinating, cut up your zucchini, bell pepper, onions, and green onions into small bite-sized pieces. I like to use both the whites and the green parts of the green onions.
- Prepare your kung pao sauce by whisking together minced garlic, water, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, oyster sauce, grated ginger, and cornstarch. Set to the side.
- Heat wok or large stir fry pan on medium-high heat and add additional 1 tbsp. of oil. Add coated chicken pieces and stir fry until they start to brown on the outside and are almost cooked through, 8-10 minutes.
- Remove chicken to a side plate and add final tablespoon of oil. Turn heat to high and add in zucchini, bell pepper, onion, and green onion. Stir fry quickly on high heat for 4-5 minutes and then remove to the side next to the chicken.
- To the empty wok, add dried chilis and peanuts and cook until peppers are fragrant (1-2 minutes). The peanuts will get a little color to them as well.
- Stir in kung pao sauce and allow to thicken and deepen in color for 1-2 minutes.
- Add back in vegetables and chicken pieces and stir to coat. Cook until sauce is thickened and the chicken is cooked through.
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