Kung pao chicken

A Sichuan favourite of tender chicken, peppers and crunchy roasted peanuts in a glossy, tangy, gently numbing sauce. Faster than a takeaway and every bit as good.

Ingredients

• 300 g Jasmine rice
• 600 g Chicken thighs, boneless, skinless, cut into 2cm pieces
• 15 ml Soy sauce
• 10 g Cornflour
• 30 ml Soy sauce
• 20 ml Rice vinegar
• 15 g Soft brown sugar
• 5 g Cornflour
• 30 ml Vegetable oil
• 3 g Sichuan peppercorns, lightly crushed
• 3 g Dried chilli flakes, or a handful of whole dried chillies
• 0.3 Garlic, 3 cloves, sliced
• 15 g Fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 1 Peppers, red, cut into squares
• 4 Spring onions, cut into short lengths
• 60 g Roasted peanuts

Method

1. Rinse the rice and cook it. Drain and keep covered.
2. Toss the chicken with 15ml soy sauce and 10g cornflour. Mix the sauce ingredients with 60ml water in a jug.
3. Toast the peanuts in a small dry frying pan until a shade darker, then tip into a bowl.
4. Heat most of the oil in a wok over a high heat and stir-fry the chicken until golden and cooked through. Lift out onto a plate.
5. Add the rest of the oil, then the Sichuan pepper and chilli and sizzle for a few seconds (do not let it burn). Add the garlic, ginger and pepper and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
6. Return the chicken with the spring onions, give the sauce a stir and pour it in. Toss until thick and glossy.
7. Serve over rice, with the toasted peanuts scattered over at the table.