Description
The most globally famous Sichuan dish (Kung Pao Chicken). Diced chicken tossed with crispy peanuts, chilies, and scallions in a masterfully balanced sweet and sour sauce resembling 'Lychee flavor' (Li Zhi Wei).
Restaurants serving Gong Bao Ji Ding (Kung Pao Chicken)
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We are researching restaurants that serve this dish.
On this site you can check dictionary details and, later, places to buy or eat related items.
The Recipe section below is a general reference, not a recipe from the listed shops.
Recipe
Ingredients
- Chicken thigh
- Peanuts
- Scallion
- Dried red chilies
- Sichuan peppercorn
- Sugar
- Black vinegar
Instructions
- [Authentic Recipe]
- Dice chicken (thigh/breast) into
- 5cm cubes. Marinate with salt, soy, wine, egg white, and starch.
- Fry peanuts in low-temp oil until deeply crunchy. Cut white scallion parts into sections matching the chicken.
- In a bowl, mix sugar, black vinegar, soy, wine, and starch slurry—heavy on sugar and vinegar—to create the traditional 'Li Zhi Wei' (Lychee-like sweet/sour) sauce.
- Flash-fry chicken in generous oil until cooked, remove.
- Leave a little oil, slow-fry Sichuan peppercorns and deseeded dried chilies until almost black to extract 'Hu La' (roasted heat).
- Return chicken and scallions, pour in the sauce, and blast on high heat. Add the crispy peanuts at the absolute last second to ensure they don't get soggy.
Learn more Spice, substitutes, tips
Key spices
Sweet/sour black vinegar & sugar、Charred chilies
Substitutes at Japanese supermarkets
Cashew nuts (but authentic requires peanuts)
Pairing
Cold Beer / White Rice
Trivia
[Trivia] Named after a Qing Dynasty official 'Ding Baozhen' (whose title was Gong Bao). Japanese versions often use cashews and lack spice, but authentic Sichuan strictly demands 'Peanuts + Black Vinegar + Sichuan Pepper'.
Eating tips & etiquette
[Unique Eating] Scoop it with a spoon to simultaneously experience the 'fluffy' chicken, 'crisp' scallion, and 'crunchy' peanut, all bound together in the sweet, sour, and spicy glaze.
Allergen
Chicken, Peanuts, Wheat, Soybeans, Eggs