This Homemade Kung pao Chicken is a tasty dinner recipe with a kick! This dish is filled with chicken and nuts and is covered in an amazing sauce, topped with green onions and perfectly served over rice.
We have so many delicious Chinese chicken recipes on the site, but this one definitely packs the most punch! If you want a less spicy dish, you’d probably enjoy Cashew Chicken, or even Sesame Chicken.
another favorite chicken dinner
I’ve said it before but, I LOVE Chinese food! Because of that, we make a lot of Asian recipes in our home. Some of our favorites are this baked sweet and sour chicken and these egg rolls. A new favorite is today’s recipe for Kung Pao Chicken (aka Kung Pow Chicken). But, what is it?
Kung Pao Chicken is a spicy stir-fry Chinese dish made with chicken, peanuts, vegetables, and chili peppers.
We had only ever had Kung Pao Chicken at a restaurant but hadn’t made it at home and was happy we did because this recipe was so delicious. The sauce alone is so tasty and would be great for many chicken recipes.
If you love some of the other Asian chicken recipes we’ve tried here on the site, then I think you’ll love this one just as much too.
How to make Kung Pao Chicken
We also love that this recipe is simple and takes little time to make.
CHICKEN. Toss chicken in a small bowl with cornstarch, until coated. Add oil to a skillet on medium heat (we liked using sesame oil but regular oil would do just fine). Stir fry for about 7-8 minutes or until no longer pink in center. Remove chicken to a paper towel to drain.
SAUCE. Add garlic, red pepper and ginger to skillet and stir fry for about 15 seconds. Remove from heat. Combine vinegar, soy sauce and sugar in small bowl, stir well.
COMBINE. Add sauce and chicken to skillet. Toss to coat. Stir in nuts. Heat thoroughly. Garnish with green onions if desired.
Serve over hot white rice, fried rice or even sesame noodles.
Have leftovers? To store Kung Pao chicken, just place in an air-tight container in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Change it up
What vegetables can I add to Kung Pao Chicken? Try some of these suggestions: Broccoli florets, sliced red bell peppers, sliced carrots, sliced yellow or green zucchini.
Remember if you add vegetables you’ll want to increase the amount of sauce you make so that all parts of the dish gets flavored.
How do I change the heat/spiciness of kung pow chicken? One easy way to adjust the spiciness is to increase or decrease the amount of red pepper flakes listed in the recipe.
If you’re looking to increase the heat try using cayenne powder. Substitute ½ teaspoon of cayenne for every ¾ teaspoon of crushed red peppers.
To decrease the heat you can omit the red pepper flakes, or try a suggestion from one our readers: substitute the chili flakes with sweet chili garlic paste.
We can’t wait to make this recipe again because it was so good!! It does have a bit of spice since that is typical with Kung Pao recipes, but if you want it more mild omit the red pepper flakes. 😉
what to serve with kung pao chicken?
And for even more Asian dinner recipes, check out:
- Edamame Chicken Stir Fry
- Lemon Chicken
- Sweet and Sour Meatballs
- Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Lemon Chicken and Asparagus Stir Fry
- Honey Sesame Chicken
- Mongolian Beef
Kung Pao Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp light sesame oil (or vegetable oil)
- 3 tbsp green onions chopped with tops
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 1/4 -1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp powdered ginger (or fresh)
- 2 tsp rice wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1/3 cup dry roasted peanuts
- 4 cups cooked rice, hot
Instructions
- Toss chicken in a small bowl with cornstarch, till coated.
- Add oil to a skillet on medium heat. We liked using the sesame oil (but regular oil would do just fine). Stir fry for about 7-8 minutes or until no longer pink in center. Remove chicken to a paper towel to drain.
- Add garlic, red pepper and ginger to skillet and stir fry for about 15 seconds. Remove from heat.
- Combine vinegar, soy sauce and sugar in small bowl, stir well. Add sauce and chicken to skillet. Toss to coat.
- Stir in nuts. Heat thoroughly. Garnish with green onions. Serve over hot rice.
I have a knack for finding the most delicious looking recipes when I’m hungry. And now that I’ve seen this, I’m starving. YUM!
Haha…time to get in the kitchen, I guess 🙂 Thanks so much!
It seems like there is not enough liquid to cover all of the chicken…..Is it allright to double the ingredients? Looks and sounds delicious!
It does cover the chicken, but of course you can double it, then add as much or as little sauce as you like. Hope you like it as much as we do! Thanks so much!
Thanks! Can’t wait to try it.
I have rice vinegar will that work?
It should, though I haven’t tried 🙂 I hope that helps!
I used rice vinegar, its great!
Our new family favorite and weekly staple! Love this recipe!! I do dpuble and triple the sauce so we can drizzle on the rice. I cant eat peanuts, so i use cashews, and i add sugar snap peas cooked for only 1 minute. We tried using sweet chili garlic paste to lessen the heat, instead of pepper flakes…my daughter requested i make it less spicy. It came out as sweet light heat. However, the pepper flakes are better.
I am so glad it is a favorite!! Thank you so much for letting me know & sharing what you did 🙂
Made this for dinner and it was yum!!! Simple, quick and easy and not heaps of ingredients. I added 1/2 capsicum, spring onions and peanuts to the meat and sauce mix and it worked really well. Oh and I used regular white vinegar which worked just as well. Will be making this regularly. Thanks heaps:)
So glad you liked it! Thank you for letting me know 🙂
My family loves this kung pao recipe!
We love chinese food! It takes a litlle more time to prepare but so worth it.
Ive never had this chicken at a RESTAURANT so I don’t know how it compares to other recipes, but this one is definitely delcious.
I love Chinese food!! I love when I can make tasty Chinese at home. This was so good! My family finished it so fast & can’t wait for me to make it again.
I love ordering this when we go out to eat; I am so excited to make it from the comfort of my home! Looking forward to making this for dinner tonight, indeed!
This chicken recipe is so simple and the BEST dinner recipe idea!
So glad I decided to try this, It came out terrific! You have a new fan, looking forward to trying more of your recipes.
Definitely save this recipe and try it later! Thank you for sharing!
You are so welcome!
Could apple cider vinegar or white vinegar be substituted? I don’t have the rice wine vinegar.
Apple Cider Vinegar or White Wine Vinegar would be your best bet for substituting the rice vinegar. 🙂