Description
Enjoy these Kung Pao Chicken Lettuce Cups for an easy dinner that combines bold spicy stir fry chicken flavors with fresh crisp lettuce. Perfect for a weeknight dinner or a family dinner with a delightful twist on lettuce wrap dinner favorites.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce (low sodium)
- 1 tablespoon sake
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 tablespoon canola or grapeseed oil
- 1 tablespoon sambal oelek (or other chile paste)
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 2 lbs chicken breast (3–4 breasts)
- 3 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoon chicken stock
- 2 tablespoon sugar
- 2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 3 tablespoon canola or grapeseed oil divided
- 8 whole dried chile de árbol (or other dried red chilies)
- ½ teaspoon ground Szechuan pepper
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- ⅔ cup roasted unsalted peanuts
- ⅓ cup green onions green parts sliced thin
- 1 head Butter Lettuce thoroughly rinsed and leaves separated
- Additional green onions green parts sliced thin
- 2 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Mix all marinade ingredients well and place chicken cut into bite-sized pieces in the mixture; refrigerate for 30 to 90 minutes.
- In a bowl, combine soy sauces, rice wine vinegar, chicken stock, sugar, sesame oil, black pepper, and cornstarch; set aside.
- Separately, combine Szechuan pepper and minced garlic; if desired, toast peanuts in a 375°F oven for a few minutes or fry in oil until darker.
- Heat a wok or large pan over medium to medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons of oil, and cook chicken for about 5 minutes until nearly cooked through; transfer to a bowl.
- Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the wok, heat for 15 seconds, then add dried chilies and cook for 30 seconds.
- Stir in garlic and Szechuan pepper, cooking another 10 seconds before adding the prepared sauce.
- Return chicken to the wok and stir until sauce thickens, about 3 to 4 minutes; turn off heat, mix in peanuts and green onions, then remove chilies before serving.
- Serve the chicken mixture in cold butter lettuce leaves and sprinkle with extra green onions and toasted sesame seeds.
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Appetizers
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Chinese
Nutrition
- Calories: 432 kcal
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 1054mg
- Fat: 24g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6g + 12g
- Trans Fat: 0.1g
- Carbohydrates: 14g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 39g
- Cholesterol: 97mg