This is Kung Pao chicken. We put the same sauce on noodles.
This dinner is easy. You cook chicken. You cook noodles. You mix a brown sauce. Then you stir them together and add peanuts.
It tastes a little sweet, a little spicy, and a little salty.
Watch the video
If you want to see someone cook it, play this video. If the player is empty, tap the picture.
▶ Open video on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLLANDBlFkg
What you need
Ginger and garlic — these make the smell.
Green onions — cut some for the pan, save some for the top.
Peanuts — this is the crunch.
Soy sauce — this makes the brown sauce.
Also buy
- 1 pound chicken, cut in small cubes
- 1 bag noodles (lo mein, ramen, or spaghetti)
- 2 tablespoons oil
- Vinegar, sugar, chili flakes
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Step 1 — Mix the sauce
In a cup, mix:
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon chili flakes (use less if you do not like hot food)
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch + 2 tablespoons water
Stir until it is smooth and brown. No white lumps.
Done when: the sauce looks like dark tea and is mixed well.
Step 2 — Cook the noodles
Boil a pot of water. Add the noodles. Cook 1 minute less than the bag says. Drain. Put a tiny bit of oil on them so they do not stick.
Done when: noodles are soft, not mushy.
Step 3 — Cook the chicken
Mix chicken with 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 1 tablespoon cornstarch.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a big pan. Add chicken. Wait until the bottom is gold. Turn the pieces. Cook about 5 minutes. Take the chicken out.
Done when: chicken is brown outside and cooked inside.
Step 4 — Cook garlic and ginger
Add a little oil to the same pan. Add chopped garlic, ginger, and the white part of the green onion. Stir 20 seconds. It will smell good. Do not burn it.
Done when: you can smell garlic.
Step 5 — Pour the sauce on the chicken
Put the chicken back in the pan. Pour the brown sauce. Stir 1 minute. The sauce will get shiny and a little thick.
Look: chicken sitting in a shiny brown sauce. That is what you want.
Step 6 — Add noodles and mix
Put the noodles in the pan. Lift and turn with two spoons or tongs. Mix until every noodle is brown and shiny.
If the pan looks dry, add 2 spoons of water.
This is how noodles look after they take the sauce.
Done when: no dry white noodles left.
Step 7 — Add peanuts and eat
Turn off the heat. Add chopped peanuts and green onion. Mix one more time. Put in bowls. Eat hot.
If something is wrong
Too hot? Use less chili. Add a pinch of sugar.
Too salty? Add a little water and a pinch of sugar.
Sauce too thin? Mix 1 teaspoon cornstarch with 1 spoon water. Stir it in.
Noodles stuck? Add a little hot water and pull them apart.
That is all. Mix sauce. Cook noodles. Cook chicken. Stir. Add peanuts. Easy Kung Pao chicken noodles.