KUNG PAO CHICKEN FOR TWO

By LaLaCooks

1.23.12 - Denis is in Vegas for a meeting so I'm cooking for 1. This was really good. I doubled the amount of vinegar and soy for the marinade and used broccoli instead of red bell peppers for veggie. Served it over brown rice. Oh - I only had bone-in skin-on thighs which made this a good bit more work. Will be much easier with boneless skinless thighs.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
Tired of dull, gloppy restaurant renditions of the restaurant classic, we set out to develop a kung pao recipe of our own. We stir-fried marinated chicken, then added small whole red chiles and peanuts. The chiles gave our dish some fire, and toasting the peanuts deepened their flavor. Finding other vegetables to be superfluous, we added diced red pepper. For a potently flavored, syrupy sauce for our kung pao recipe, we used a mixture of chicken broth, black rice vinegar, Asian sesame oil, oyster-flavored sauce, hoisin sauce, and cornstarch. While we prefer this dish made with chicken thighs rather than breasts because the dark meat has richer flavor and is less prone to drying out, if you prefer, you can replace the thighs with chicken breasts. You can substitute plain rice vinegar for the black rice vinegar (available in Asian markets), but we prefer the latter for its fruity, salty complexity.

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs , trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dry sherry or rice wine
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 2 medium cloves garlic , pressed through garlic press or minced (about 2 teaspoons)
• 1/4 inch piece fresh ginger , peeled and minced (about 1 teaspoon)
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil or vegetable oil, plus an additional 1 teaspoon
• 1/4 cup roasted unsalted peanuts , or cashews
• 2 small whole dried red chiles (each about 1 3/4 to 2 inches long), roughly crumbled, or 1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
• 1/3 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon black rice vinegar or plain rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons oyster sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
• 3/4 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 small red bell pepper , cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 2 medium scallions , sliced thin

Details

Servings 2
Adapted from cooksillustrated.com

Preparation

Step 1

1. Toss chicken with sherry and soy sauce in medium bowl; marinate until thighs have absorbed flavors, about 10 minutes. Mix garlic, ginger, and 1 teaspoon oil in small bowl; set aside. Combine peanuts and chiles in small bowl; set aside. Mix chicken broth, vinegar, sesame oil, oyster-flavored sauce, hoisin sauce, and cornstarch in small bowl or measuring cup; set aside.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 10-inch skillet over high heat until just beginning to smoke. Add chicken and cook without stirring for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, allowing chicken to brown on one side; stir and cook 1 to 1 1/2 minutes more, until no longer pink; stir peanuts and chiles into chicken and continue cooking until peanuts have darkened slightly, 30 to 40 seconds longer. Transfer chicken, peanuts, and chiles to bowl; set aside.
3. Return skillet to burner and reheat briefly, 15 to 30 seconds. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil, swirl to coat pan, and add red bell pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened, about 45 seconds. Clear center of pan, add garlic-ginger mixture, mash into pan with spoon or spatula, and cook until fragrant, 10 to 15 seconds; stir into peppers until combined. Stir broth mixture to recombine, then add to skillet along with reserved chicken, peanuts, and chiles; cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits on bottom of pan, until sauce has thickened to syrupy consistency, about 15 to 20 seconds. Stir in scallions and serve.