Gong Bao (Kung Pao) Mushroom or Chicken
This recipe is taken from Cookbooks for Dinner which adapted it from Every Grain of Rice. I made the vegan version with mushrooms which turned out great. Next time I will make the Kung Pao Chicken. Uwajimaya is the goto source for prickly ash, dark soy, Chinkiang vinegar or anything else Asian you can't find at the grocery store.
11 oz portobello mushroom caps, 1/2" dice OR 11 oz boneless chicken breasts, 1/2" dice
8-10 Sichuanese dried chillies
3 cloves of garlic
An equivalent amount of ginger
5 spring onions, white parts only
About ¾ cup vegetable oil (I used less)
1 tsp whole Sichuan pepper (also known as prickly ash)
3 oz. roasted peanuts
MARINADE
¼ tsp salt
1 ½ tbsp potato starch
11 oz portobello mushroom caps, 1/2" dice OR 11 oz boneless chicken breasts, 1/2" dice
8-10 Sichuanese dried chillies
3 cloves of garlic
An equivalent amount of ginger
5 spring onions, white parts only
About ¾ cup vegetable oil (I used less)
1 tsp whole Sichuan pepper (also known as prickly ash)
3 oz. roasted peanuts
MARINADE
¼ tsp salt
1 ½ tbsp potato starch
1 tbsp water
SAUCE
3 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
¼ tsp potato flour
½ tsp dark soy sauce or kecap marins
2 tsp light soy sauce
3 tsp Chinkiang vinegar
MUSHROOMS: Bring a panful of water (about 2 quarts/2 litres) to the boil. Trim the mushrooms and cut into 3/8-3/4 in (1-2cm) cubes. Blanch the mushroom cubes in the boiling water for about a minute, until partially cooked. Drain, refresh under the cold tap and shake dry. Add the marinade ingredients and mix well.
CHICKEN
3 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
¼ tsp potato flour
½ tsp dark soy sauce or kecap marins
2 tsp light soy sauce
3 tsp Chinkiang vinegar
MUSHROOMS: Bring a panful of water (about 2 quarts/2 litres) to the boil. Trim the mushrooms and cut into 3/8-3/4 in (1-2cm) cubes. Blanch the mushroom cubes in the boiling water for about a minute, until partially cooked. Drain, refresh under the cold tap and shake dry. Add the marinade ingredients and mix well.
CHICKEN
Cut chicken as evenly as possible into half-inch strips, then cut strips into small cubes. Place in a small bowl. Add marinade ingredients and 1 tablespoon water to bowl. Mix well and set aside.
2. Peel and thinly slice garlic and ginger. Chop spring onions into chunks as long as their diameter (to match the chicken cubes). Snip chiles in half or into sections, discarding their seeds.
3. In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients.
4. Heat a seasoned wok over a high flame. Add oil, chiles and Sichuan pepper and stir-fry briefly until chiles are darkening but not burned. (Remove wok from heat if necessary to prevent overheating.)
5. Quickly add chicken or mushrooms and stir-fry over a high flame, stirring constantly. As soon as chicken/mushroom cubes have separated, add ginger, garlic and spring onions and continue to stir-fry until they are fragrant and meat is just cooked through (test one of the larger pieces to make sure).
6. Give sauce a stir and add to wok, continuing to stir and toss. As soon as the sauce has become thick and shiny, add the peanuts, stir them in and serve.
NOTE: Store-bought roasted peanuts work well here, but if you want to roast your own peanuts, heat oven to 250 degrees. Place raw nuts on an oven tray and roast for 15 to 20 minutes, until fragrant and very slightly golden. (Keep an eye on them, as they are easily burned.) Cool nuts on a plate, then rub nuts between your fingertips to loosen their skins. Shake nuts as you blow over them; skins will blow away.
2. Peel and thinly slice garlic and ginger. Chop spring onions into chunks as long as their diameter (to match the chicken cubes). Snip chiles in half or into sections, discarding their seeds.
3. In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients.
4. Heat a seasoned wok over a high flame. Add oil, chiles and Sichuan pepper and stir-fry briefly until chiles are darkening but not burned. (Remove wok from heat if necessary to prevent overheating.)
5. Quickly add chicken or mushrooms and stir-fry over a high flame, stirring constantly. As soon as chicken/mushroom cubes have separated, add ginger, garlic and spring onions and continue to stir-fry until they are fragrant and meat is just cooked through (test one of the larger pieces to make sure).
6. Give sauce a stir and add to wok, continuing to stir and toss. As soon as the sauce has become thick and shiny, add the peanuts, stir them in and serve.
NOTE: Store-bought roasted peanuts work well here, but if you want to roast your own peanuts, heat oven to 250 degrees. Place raw nuts on an oven tray and roast for 15 to 20 minutes, until fragrant and very slightly golden. (Keep an eye on them, as they are easily burned.) Cool nuts on a plate, then rub nuts between your fingertips to loosen their skins. Shake nuts as you blow over them; skins will blow away.
