Brief Introduction
Kung Pao Chicken is a classic Sichuan dish known for its sweet, sour, and slightly spicy flavor with a crunchy peanut texture. It was named after Ding Baozhen, a high-ranking official of the Qing Dynasty. His title was “Gong Bao” (Palatial Guardian), and he was very fond of this dish. As it became a regular feature at his banquets, people started calling it “Gong Bao Ji Ding” in his honor.
Home-style
① Cut the chicken breast in half horizontally, then dice into evenly sized pieces. Place in a bowl and add a pinch of salt, pepper, cooking wine, a little dark soy sauce, one egg white, and one tablespoon of starch. Mix until the mixture becomes sticky. Drizzle with a suitable amount of cooking oil to lock in the moisture, and marinate for half an hour.
② Prepare the sauce: In an empty bowl, combine 1 tablespoon of starch, 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce, 3 tablespoons of sugar, 4 tablespoons of black vinegar, and 5 tablespoons of water. Mix well and set aside.
③ Heat oil in a pan, add the marinated chicken dices, and quickly stir-fry until 80% cooked (the surface turns white while the inside remains slightly translucent). Remove and set aside.
④ Heat oil in another pan, add Sichuan peppercorns to release their fragrance, then add scallion segments, ginger slices, minced garlic, dried chili peppers, and doubanjiang (fermented broad bean paste). Stir-fry over low heat until the oil turns red and fragrant.
⑤ Add the chicken dices, cucumber dices, and blanched carrot dices to the pan. Turn the heat to high and stir-fry quickly a few times. Pour in the prepared sauce and toss the pan rapidly to coat everything evenly, about five to six tosses.
⑥ Add a handful of roasted peanuts and quickly toss to combine. Serve immediately.
