Kung pao chicken is a dish that is familiar to many of us, especially those who have spent some time ordering for a single serving Chinese “tai chao” dish around Klang Valley. It is also a staple of Westernised Chinese cuisine.
The dish is made of spicy, stir-fried cubes of chicken, peanuts, vegetables and chilli peppers, and is coincidentally a dish that is pretty simple to prepare on your own.
This recipe a slightly tweaked version of this traditional dish, as sweet potato is incorporated into the mix.
Ingredients:
- 2 quarter chicken legs (or other parts if preferred), deboned and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 250g sweet potato, cut into small chunks
- Half cup cashew nuts (optional)
- ½ clove garlic
- 2cm ginger
- ½ dozen dried chilli
- 3-4 fresh chili padi (optional)
- Cooking oil
Sauce:
- 1 ½ tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons dark vinegar
Method:
- Heat up cooking oil in a pan.
- Stir fry ginger, garlic, and the two types of chillies.
- Add cashew nuts. If they’re not toasted, stir fry until fragrant.
- Add chicken and sweet potato together, and cook for five to seven minutes.
- Add sauce, and stir for an additional minute.
- Once done, sprinkle on some spring onion or cilantro before serving.
This recipe was first published here.
Trying to influence your cravings since 2005, Kar Yeong was Guest Judge on Versus 1001 Rasa Baba’s 2018, R.AGE Food Fight Judge 2015 and NTV7 Foodie Blogger 2014. To read more about Kar Yeong’s food journeys, visit his blog at KYspeaks.com.