I’ve always been drawn to the flavours and aromas of Asian cooking. I find that there’s a funny stigma attached to Chinese cuisine which makes people think of poor quality and dangerous additives. But once you understand the basics and you have a pantry stocked with only healthy, nutritious ingredients, you can re-create all your favorite dishes without the concern of things like MSG.
Here’s a recipe for Kung Pao Chicken I have tweaked over the years to become what it is today:
Ingredients:
2 tbsp wheat-free tamari
1/4 cup low sodium organic chicken broth
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup tapioca starch
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
1.5 tsp unrefined sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
3-4 tbsp unrefined virgin coconut oil
1/4 tsp dried chili pepper flakes
2 tbsp minced ginger
6 scallions (thinly sliced, keep whites and greens separate)
1 red bell pepper (cut into 1 inch pieces)
2 stalks celery (cut crosswise about 1/4 inch thick)
1/4 cup chopped almonds or peanuts
1/4 cup white wine
1.5 lbs boneless, skinless, organic chicken breasts (about 3 breasts – cut into 1 inch cubes)
Instructions:
Don’t let the amount of ingredients intimidate you. It’s really an easy dish. The key is doing the prep before starting to cook. You will also probably want to cook some brown rice or quinoa to serve with this dish. So consider the timing you need for this.
Put 1 tbsp of the tapioca starch in a mixing bowl. The rest of the starch will be used elsewhere.
Into that same mixing bowl, whisk in the broth, tamari, balsamic vinegar, sesame oil and sugar. Stir it up so there are no starch clumps.
Put the chicken pieces into a separate large bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Dump in the remaining tapioca starch and stir it around well with some tongs so all the chicken is coated. You may need to add a bit more starch depending on the exact amount of chicken you have.
Heat a larger fry pan with half of the coconut oil until its hot. Place all the chicken in the pan carefully and let it cook on one side for a couple minutes. Flip the chicken and let the other side cook for another couple minutes. It should become a bit crispy and some bit may stick to the pan (which is ok).
If the oil is pretty much gone, you may need to add another tbsp at this point.
Now add the chili flakes, scallion whites only, and ginger. Stir everything around for a minute.
Toss in the red bell pepper pieces and the celery. Stir and cook for a couple minutes.
The pan may be going a bit dry at this point and there will likely be some bits sticking to the bottom. Pour in the white wine to de-glaze the pan for a minute. Stir it around and scrap the bits off the bottom.
Give the broth mixture a quick stir before adding it into the pan. It should thicken fairly quickly. Stir everything around well to coat all the chicken and veggies and let it cook for a minute or two to allow the chicken to cook through.
Serve on rice or quinoa and garnish with the chopped nuts and scallion greens.
If anyone tries to tell you that Chinese food is always unhealthy, you can tell them that Vancouver Nutritionist, Rich Ralph, can prove them wrong with recipes like this. Enjoy!
