CarolCooks2…Chinese New Year Recipes…Spicy Sichuan Chicken Stir Fry…

This is a quick and easy stir fry…quite spicy but if you are not hot on spices then just adjust the Sichuan pepper and the dried chillies…although my son has told me that the dried chillies in the UK are not as hot as our dried chillies but if you use dried chillies you will know the heat of yours and can adjust to your taste/heat tolerance.

We love stir-fries as they are so forgiving and if you have any odds of veggies in your fridge to use then chop and add, green beans, okra, green chillies instead of red just play with it and make it yours…Enjoy!

Ingredients:

450g chicken breast or thigh
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine
1/4 tsp white pepper
Pinch of salt
2 tbsp cornflour
3 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp Sichuan pepper
2 tsp fresh ginger finely chopped or grated
1-3 garlic cloves finely chopped or grated
1 cup birdseye dried chillies
1/2 tsp sugar
1tsp Shaoxing rice wine
4 spring onions chopped…
Fresh coriander (to garnish)
Sesame seeds (toasted to garnish)

Let’s Cook!

Start by slicing open the dried chillies and removing the seeds, then place them in a bowl of water to soak.

To make the marinade, add the soy, 1 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine, pepper and salt to a bowl. Cut the chicken into small, bitesize cubes and place into the marinade for 10 minutes…

In a dry pan or wok, toast one tsp of the Sichuan Peppercorns until fragrant, then grind in a pestle and mortar. Next, add the oil to the wok or deep pan and place over high heat. Heat the oil until bubbling, then add the chicken with its marinade, allowing it to turn golden brown on each side before turning. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Clean the wok or pan, then over a gentle heat, add a little oil to fry the chillies for 1-2 minutes, until dark red. Add the remaining tsp of whole Sichuan Peppercorns, and fry for a further minute.

Next add the ginger, garlic and white of the spring onions, and stir fry for a minute to soften. Return the chicken to the pan, together with the sugar, salt, Shaoxing wine, ground Sichuan peppercorns, spring onion greens and sesame seeds. Stir fry for a final minute to heat the chicken through.