Hot and spicy, and full of flavour. This spicy Szechuan chicken is made with tender chicken breasts, and packed with vegetables in a flavourful sauce. It takes only half an hour to cook, and because the vegetables are already included, all you will need by way of accompaniment is a bowl of noodles or white rice.
This spicy Szechuan (or Sichuan) chicken recipe is my version of Szechuan Chicken which originated in the Sichuan Province of China.
The dish gets its name from the liberal use of Szechuan peppercorns, which have a very distinctive taste. They are not hot in the way that chilli is hot, so they do not burn. Instead, they create an interesting tingly yet numbing sensation in the mouth, with a slight taste of citrus.
Szechuan peppercorns are not a true pepper. They are the dried flowers of the prickly ash tree, a member of the citrus family, hence the citrus flavour.
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What is Szechuan chicken?
Szechuan chicken is a spicy chicken dish that you will find on the menu at any Chinese restaurant.
It is made with strips of marinated chicken which are stir-fried with vegetables such as onions and bell peppers.
The dish is then combined with a sweet yet spicy sauce, made with usual Chinese ingredients such as soy and oyster sauce, and 5-spice powder, and spiced up with garlic, ginger, chilli and Szechuan peppercorns.
There are many variations of Szechuan chicken.
- Some versions call for the chicken to be coated in batter and fried until crispy, others marinate the chicken before frying it.
- There are hot versions that require whole and chopped chillies, and milder versions that use less chilli.
- And of course, the vegetables are all interchangeable, so you can use your favourite vegetables to customise this dish to your preference.
All versions are equally delicious, and I think the beauty of this dish lies in its versatility. As long as you stick to the ingredients for the sauce, you can experiment with different ways of making it and it will still be absolutely delicious.
Ingredients
This recipe is sufficient for 4 people.
Preparation: about 20 minutes. Actual cooking time: about 30 minutes.
The images are separated into ingredients for the chicken and ingredients for the sauce.
Chicken - these are skinless chicken breast fillets. If you prefer you could use skinless, deboned chicken thighs instead. They should be cut into bite-sized pieces.
Soy sauce and cornflour - used to marinate the chicken. Marinating the chicken in soy and cornflour is the traditional Chinese way of tenderising the chicken.
Salt - I haven't included salt as an ingredient because the soy sauce may provide sufficient saltiness. If you prefer a little extra salt you could add this to the chicken marinade.
Vegetables - you can mix and match the vegetables to suit your own taste and you will need 1 to 1.5 cups of a mixture of vegetables per person. For this recipe, I've used a mixture of shredded cabbage, yellow peppers, carrots, green beans, broccoli, onions and mushrooms.
These are the ingredients for the sauce. They seem like quite a lot of ingredients, but they are all pretty standard.
Oyster and soy sauce - these are readily available in the Asian aisle of most supermarkets. They add a savoury umami flavour to the dish.
Sesame oil - despite being an oil, sesame oil is not used for frying. It is used for seasoning and is quite strong so you won't need much. It adds a slight nutty element to the dish.
Brown sugar - for a hint of sweetness.
Rice vine vinegar - for a sour element.
5-spice powder - this is a mixture of cinnamon, star anise, fennel, cloves and either ginger or Szechuan pepper. I use a blend made by Schwartz which I find is nicely balanced.
Szechuan peppercorns - I've included a link to Amazon, but you can normally find them in the Asian aisle of most large supermarkets. If you can't get hold of them, add a tablespoon of lemon juice and half a teaspoon of ground black pepper to the recipe instead. You won't get the mouth-numbing sensation but at least you'd get a mild citrus flavour and slight heat from the black pepper.
Garlic and ginger - you can use fresh garlic and ginger which should both be finely diced, or for convenience, you can use garlic and ginger paste from a jar.
Tomato paste - this is highly concentrated tomatoes - not to be confused with tomato ketchup!
Chicken stock - if you don't have fresh chicken stock you can use a stock cube dissolved in a cup of boiling water.
How to make Szechuan chicken
As with many Chinese dishes, most of the work in making this Szechuan chicken is in the preparation. Once that is done, the dish comes together in minutes!
There are 5 easy steps to follow.
- Velvet the chicken to tenderise and add flavour.
- Slice and shred the vegetables. They should be washed/peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces. If you are using onions, cut them into large pieces and separate them into individual petals.
- Fry the chicken until it is almost cooked through and set aside - it will finish cooking in the sauce.
- Mix the spicy Szechuan sauce and cook the vegetables.
- Add the cooked chicken back into the sauce, simmer for a few minutes and serve.
Velvet the chicken
If you've ever wondered how Chinese restaurants get their meat so tender, it's because they velvet it before cooking. Velveting is a process whereby meat is tenderised by marinating in a mixture of cornflour (cornstarch) and a flavouring such as soy or oyster sauce for 10 - 15 minutes before cooking. The soy and cornflour react with the fibres of the meat, breaking down the protein and causing the meat to become more tender.
If you do a Google search on velveting meat, you will find lots of other methods. Some of them advise using bicarbonate of soda, or egg whites. I've been using this method of cornflour and soy sauce for years, and it always works for me.
Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and mix it with the soy sauce, salt and cornflour. Set aside for a few minutes while you prepare the vegetables.
Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a mixing jug and set aside.
Drain the chicken through a colander and reserve the marinade. Heat the sunflower oil in a pan, and when hot, add the chicken and fry over moderate to high heat, stirring continuously, until the chicken is browned on all sides. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.
Add an additional splash of oil to the pan if necessary and add the yellow pepper, onion petals, mushrooms, ginger and garlic. Continue to stir-fry on moderate heat until the onions turn translucent. This will take 4 to 5 minutes.
Add the carrots, beans and cabbage and stirfry for another minute until they are well coated with the oil.
Pour in the prepared sauce and any reserved marinade and bring to a boil. Cover the pan with a lid, turn the heat to simmer and leave to steam for 8 to 10 minutes until the vegetables are almost soft.
Stir in the broccoli.
Cover the pan and cook for another 2 minutes until the broccoli is starting to soften.
Add the chicken back to the pan and allow it to heat through. Taste for seasoning and add salt only if necessary.
Serving suggestion
Serve with a bowl of white rice (why not try my easy Chinese egg fried rice) or noodles.
Tips for a perfect result
Here are my top tips to ensure your Szechuan chicken turns out perfectly.
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FAQ
One of the ingredients in the authentic recipe for Szechuan chicken is Sichuan pepper which is a spice grown in the Sichuan province of China. Despite its name, the Sichuan pepper is not related to either the black pepper or the red chilli pepper. Instead, this spice has a mild citrus flavour and creates a tingly numbness in the mouth when eaten. It is one of the ingredients in Chinese 5-spice powder.
Yes, you can freeze this dish. There are only 2 of us at home now, and I normally make a double batch and freeze half for another meal.
Just allow the dish to cool completely before packing it into rigid containers. Label and freeze it for up to 3 months.
To reheat:
Allow the Szechuan chicken to defrost in the refrigerator then tip the contents into a large frying pan and heat gently until piping hot.
If you prefer, you can defrost the dish in the microwave, then reheat on full power for approximately 3 minutes (the timing will depend on the wattage of your microwave and the amount of food that you are reheating).
Finally, you could just tip the frozen chicken into a large saucepan, cover with a lid and leave over a LOW heat until the dish has defrosted. Then turn up the heat and bring to a boil.
If you want to make this dish in advance, you could cook the sauce and vegetables and leave them in a covered dish in the refrigerator for up to three days.
When you are ready to make the dish, prepare and fry the chicken as per the recipe instructions, heat the sauce in a large pan until piping hot and stir in the chicken.
If you would like to add more heat to this dish, add a few whole chillies with the onions along with one or two chopped chillies. Remove the whole chillies before serving.
There is no need to crush the Szechuan pepper. It will soften in the sauce as the dish is cooking.
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Related recipes
If you enjoyed this easy Szechuan chicken recipe, why not try some of my other fakeaway meals:
📋The recipe
Spicy Szechuan Chicken
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- Small mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Sharp Knife
- Chopping Board
- Wok or large frying pan
Ingredients
Chicken and marinade
- 1 pound / 450 grams chicken breast fillet cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons / 20 grams cornflour / cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons sunflower or canola oil for frying
Vegetables
- 1 cup white cabbage finely sliced
- 1 cup broccoli florets
- ½ cup carrots cut into batons
- ½ cup chopped green beans
- 1 cup button mushrooms
- 1 small yellow pepper deseeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 mediuim onion quartered and separated into petals
- 1 teaspoon crushed garlic fresh garlic cloves or use from a jar
- ½ teaspoon crushed ginger fresh or from a jar
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon crushed Szechuan peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon dried chili flakes more or less to your own taste
- ½ teaspoon 5-spice powder
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar OR balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- 2 tablespoons cornflour / cornstarch
- 2 cups chicken stock if you don't have stock, use 2 stock cubes dissolved in 2 cups of boiling water.
Instructions
Preparation
- Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces1 pound / 450 grams chicken breast fillet
- Whisk the soy sauce, cornflour and salt in a bowl to remove any lumps.2 tablespoons dark soy sauce, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 tablespoons / 20 grams cornflour / cornstarch
- Add the chicken and mix to coat thoroughly. Set aside for 10 to 15 minutes to marinate. Once marinated, drain the chicken through a colander, reserving the marinade. This will be used to thicken the sauce later.
- Peel, shred and slice the vegetables. Try to keep the vegetables to a consistent size so they all cook at the same time.
- Combine all the sauce ingredients in a jug. Let the chicken stock cool before adding the cornflour or you will end up with lumps.2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons oyster sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 teaspoon crushed Szechuan peppercorns, 1 teaspoon dried chili flakes, ½ teaspoon 5-spice powder, 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar OR balsamic vinegar, 1 tablespoon tomato puree, 2 tablespoons cornflour / cornstarch, 2 cups chicken stock
Fry the chicken
- Heat the sunflower oil in a pan, and when hot, add the chicken and fry over moderate to high heat, stirring continuously, until the chicken is browned on all sides and white on the inside. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.2 tablespoons sunflower or canola oil
- Cooked chicken will have an internal temperature of 74°C or 165°F.
Vegetables and sauce
- Add an additional splash of oil to the pan if necessary and add the yellow pepper, onion petals, mushrooms, ginger and garlic. Continue to stir-fry on moderate heat until the onions turn translucent. This will take 4 to 5 minutes.1 cup button mushrooms, 1 small yellow pepper, 1 mediuim onion, 1 teaspoon crushed garlic, ½ teaspoon crushed ginger
- Add the carrots, beans and cabbage and stirfry for another minute until they are well coated with the oil.1 cup white cabbage, ½ cup carrots, ½ cup chopped green beans
- Pour in the prepared sauce and any reserved marinade and bring to a boil. Cover the pan with a lid, turn the heat to simmer and leave to steam for 8 to 10 minutes until the vegetables are almost soft.
- Stir in the broccoli. Cover the pan and cook for another 2 minutes until the broccoli starts to soften.1 cup broccoli florets
- Add the chicken back to the pan and allow it to heat through. Taste for seasoning and add salt if necessary.
- Serve on a bed of noodles or white rice.
Notes
- Prepare everything up front. Once you start cooking there won't be time to chop vegetables!
- When frying the onions and peppers, I find it easiest to turn the heat to low, cover the pan with a lid and leave them to steam until translucent.
- When combining the sauce ingredients, let the chicken stock cool before adding the cornflour or you will end up with lumps.
- If you are swapping out the suggested vegetables for your own choice, do take into account the cooking time needed for the different vegetables and adjust the cooking instructions accordingly. The aim is to get the vegetables all cooked at the same time without some being raw and others being overcooked.
- When heating the chicken (last step) take it off the heat as soon as the chicken is hot. Don't heat it for too long or the chicken will overcook and become tough.
- If you are worried about the chicken being fully cooked, test with a probe thermometer. Cooked chicken will have an internal temperature of 74C / 165F.
- If the sauce is too thick thin it down with a little extra stock or water. On the other hand if the sauce is too thin, thicken it by stirring in a mixture of cornflour and water.
- Taste the dish at various points and adjust the flavourings if necessary.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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