Spicy Kung Pao Chicken with Crispy Chicken Thighs
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My spicy kung pao chicken skips the usual cornstarch marinade. The chicken thighs get dredged in flour and pan-fried until the edges turn golden and crisp. Then I toss with blistered chilis, crisp-tender onions and peppers, crunchy peanuts, and a glossy sweet-savory hoisin sauce.
Most kung pao chicken recipes have you velvet the chicken first, tossing it with cornstarch and soy so it turns silky in the pan. I go the other direction and dredge mine in seasoned flour.
The chicken browns in batches until the edges are properly crisp, then comes out while the aromatics cook. When it goes back in and the sauce hits, those edges hold instead of going soft. That’s the texture I’m after in this spicy kung pao chicken: crunchy chicken, crunchy peanuts, peppers and onion still with some snap left in them. The sauce is hoisin, soy, rice vinegar, and honey, so it lands savory and a little sweet with sourness underneath, and the chilis de arbol bring the heat.
Nothing here needs a visit to a specialty store. I purposely made this recipe without Shaoxing wine, black vinegar, or Sichuan peppercorns, since they aren’t common ingredients in North American kitchens. Thirty-five minutes start to finish, which beats delivery most nights, and if you want another takeout-style dinner in the same spirit, my honey sriracha chicken gets made about as often.
Is this an authentic kung pao chicken recipe?
No, and I think it’s worth being clear about that. Kung pao chicken is a Sichuan classic, and a traditional version is built on Sichuan peppercorns, Shaoxing wine, black vinegar, and sometimes chili bean paste. The peppercorns in particular do something nothing else can: they bring a tingling numbness alongside the heat that’s central to how the dish is supposed to taste.
This is the Westernized version, the one that shows up on North American takeout menus. I use chilis de arbol instead of Chinese dried chilies, hoisin as the backbone of the sauce, and I’ve added red pepper and onion, which a traditional recipe wouldn’t include. Everything in it comes from a regular grocery store.
I make it this way because it’s what I actually cook on a Tuesday, and because I think it’s genuinely good on its own terms, not as a compromise. If you want to cook the traditional version, Red House Spice has an excellent one.
What to serve with kung pao chicken
Rice is the obvious answer, and the right one. The sauce is thick and there’s a lot of it, so you want something plain underneath to catch it. Here’s how I cook basmati rice so the grains stay separate instead of clumping. Noodles work too. One reader, Lyndsay, swapped in farkay noodles instead of rice and said the sauce was amazing on them.
For a vegetable on the side, sauteed bok choy is what I make most often. It’s quick enough to cook while the chicken rests, and the slight bitterness in the greens cuts through the sweetness in the hoisin.
Spicy Kung Pao Chicken with Crispy Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
Kung Pao Chicken Sauce
- ¼ cup hoisin sauce
- 2 tablespoons EACH: water and soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon EACH: cornstarch, rice wine vinegar, honey
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
Kung Pao Chicken
- 2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs (cut into bite-sized pieces)
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons neutral-flavored oil
- 4 red chilis (chilis de arbol)
- 4 cloves garlic (smashed with the side of your knife)
- 2 inch piece of ginger (julienned)
- 2 red peppers (sliced)
- 1 onion (sliced)
- ½ cup dry roasted peanuts
- Green onions and sesame seeds (to serve)
Instructions
- Add all the kung pao chicken sauce ingredients to a small bowl and whisk to combine.¼ cup hoisin sauce, 2 tablespoons EACH: water and soy sauce, 1 tablespoon EACH: cornstarch, rice wine vinegar, honey, ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- Place the flour and pepper into a large bowl and then add the chicken. Mix the chicken around so that each piece is coated in flour.2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, ¼ cup all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- Heat the oil in a large, non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat until it is shimmering. Working in 2-3 batches, cook the chicken until it is brown and crispy on both sides, about 5 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and drain off all but approximately 1 tablespoon of oil.2 tablespoons neutral-flavored oil
- Add the chilis, garlic, and ginger to the pan and let them cook for 2 minutes, or until the chilis soften and the garlic turns golden. Add the peppers and onion and let them cook, stirring often, for about 3 minutes.4 red chilis, 4 cloves garlic, 2 inch piece of ginger, 1 onion, 2 red peppers
- Add the chicken back into the pan and pour the sauce over top. Stir continuously until it has thickened, about 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and stir through the peanuts. Serve with green onion slices and sesame seeds over top.½ cup dry roasted peanuts, Green onions and sesame seeds
Nutrition
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It’s of no surprise that this is an amazing dish.
We loved it.
I’m so happy to hear that!
This recipe just replaced my old Chicken recipe. It was wonderful! So simple and easy, too.
Hooray! So happy to hear you like it!!
Just finished making this and it was amazing! Fast and easy and my family, kid included, devoured it! We used farkay noodles in place of the rice and that sauce was amazing on them. Thanks for another great dinner!
Awesome! So happy to hear you like the recipe!!
Yay! I have been out of the country for a couple weeks and I am making stir fry tonight to satisfy my veggie craving, I just needed a good sauce. This one looks delish and I am making it tonight. Thanks for the great idea. My tummy will thank you later too Im sure 🙂