Celtnet Recipes Blog: Gong Bao Chicken Recipe

Tomorrow (February 10th 2013), if you were unaware, is Chinese New Year, this year being the year of the snake. Over the past few weeks I've been adding lots of Chinese recipes on this blog.

Well, you can now bring all those recipes together to prepare a true Chinese banquet, or you can pick and choose between the recipes to create your favourite meal.

Today's recipe, however, is for a true classic: Gong Bao Chicken (also known as kung pao chicken). Chicken in a hot and spicy Szechwan-style sauce.

Gong Bao Chicken

Serves: 4

This is a classic Chinese recipe, also known commonly as kung pao for chicken in a hot dried chilli sauce with Szechuan peppercorns.

Ingredients:

For the Chicken:
2 boneless chicken breast halves, skin removed and cut into 1cm (1/2 in) cubes
1 tbsp vegetable oil or peanut oil
10 dried red chillies (or to taste), snipped into 2 or 3 pieces each
1 tsp Szechuan peppercorns
3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
3cm (1 in) piece of fresh ginger, sliced thinly
1 tbsp spring onions (white part only), roughly chopped
90g (3 oz) roasted peanuts

For the Marinade:
2 tsp light soy sauce
1 tsp Shaoxing rice wine (or dry sherry)
1/2 tsp sugar

For the Sauce:
1 tsp light soy sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp black Chinese rice vinegar
a few drops of sesame oil
2 tbsp chicken stock
1 tsp sugar

Method:

Whisk together the marinade ingredients in a bowl, add the cube chicken and toss to coat. Cover and set aside to marinade for at least 20 minutes.

In the meantime, whisk together all the sauce ingredients in a separate bowl and set aside.

Add the oil in a preheated wok, and when hot add the chillies and Szechuan peppercorns and stir-fry for a minute or so, or until crisp and fragrant. Add the chicken pieces, stir frying until they begin to turn white. Now add the garlic, ginger and spring onions.

Stir-fry the mixture for 5 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through then pour in the sauce mixture. Stir fry for 2 minutes more, or until the sauce is heated through then add the peanuts. Toss to combine and serve immediately.

Below are some other classic Chinese recipes on this blog that you can use in conjunction with this recipe to produce a complete Chinese meal or banquet:

Soups and Starters

Chicken Steamboat Soup

Wonton Soup

Main Dishes

Spicy Szechuan Pork (Meat)
Xinjiang Lamb Casserole
Gong Bao (Kung Pao) Chicken

Fish and Seafood Dishes:

Deep-fried River Fish with Chilli Bean Sauce
Stir-fried Scallops with Asparagus

Clams in Black Bean Sauce

Vegetarian Dishes:
Chinese Vegetable and Coconut Curry

Oyster Mushrooms and Vegetables with Peanut Chilli Sauce

Szechuan Fried Aubergine (Vegetarian)

Noodle Dishes:

Sour and Spicy Pork with Noodles