Kung Pao Chicken Delish

Peanut allergies in the house?  No Worries

I love the flavor of the Kung Pao  sauce but no one in my family likes the peanuts.  SO the question is, does Kung Pao really need the nuts in order to be Kung Pao?

I had to research the origins of this dish  to find out what the title actually means.

 

I found some discrepancies  but learned that the name Kung Pao  comes from the name of the man credited for the creation of the dish and not the actual contents.

So if you can’t eat or don’t like the nuts, leave ’em out.  I do like the peanuts but the rest of the family does not so when I do make this with peanuts, I find them sitting on the edge of plates or a whole boatload left in the serving dish after we’ve finished dinner.  Only the nuts are left.

If you have any leftovers and I am guessing you won’t, the nuts  don’t reheat very well so when I do add nuts I use a small portion of nuts to satisfy my own palate.

Many Chinese stir fry recipes marinate the protein before cooking and this adds really great flavor to whatever stir fry you are making.  It is a step you do not have to do but it really gives the meat or shrimp that *Wow* factor and tastes all the more authentic.

Eat more vegetables

I try to make a nice balance of vegetables to the meat in any stir fry so I used just 1/2 a red pepper as seen in pictures.  Sometimes I guess right and other times  not.  You are the chef and you know what you and your family likes to eat.  Chop up the whole pepper if you like lots of veggies or if you don’t think you will use it later.

This recipe calls for raw peanuts and then you blister them with the red peppers.  You can use roasted peanuts if that is what you can find and just add them when you add the sauce to the pan.

Preparation of this dish may seem a little complicated so I recommend you break down the prep as I have  done  in the recipe below to keep it organized and easier to combine at the very end.  Marinate the meat first, mix up the sauce ingredients and set aside and then prepare the seasonings.  I like to cook the meat and vegetables separately because this keeps the vegetables crisper and keeps them from getting soggy with any excess oil from cooking  or fat from the meat.  I usually cook the vegetables then remove to a plate then  cook the meat and then take the rest from there.  You will figure out what works best for you.

I believe anyone can cook if you can follow a recipe. The key is finding the right recipe to follow because not  all recipes are worth your time or effort. You can be sure that this one will knock your socks off!

Give a try and tell me what you think.