Meals · Stir-fries & fried rice
Paleo kung pao chicken
Marinated chicken and crunchy toasted cashews stir-fried with red pepper, zucchini, whole dried chilies, garlic and ginger in a dark, tangy sauce of coconut aminos and balsamic. All the sweet, sour and savoury punch of the Sichuan-American classic, gentle enough for the table to share, over cauliflower rice.
- Time
- 40 min (20 prep + 20 cook)
- Servings
- 4
- Per serving
- 500 kcal
- Protein
- 46 g
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb chicken breast, cut in 2 cm (3/4-inch) cubes
Marinade
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 6 tbsp coconut aminos, divided
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 tbsp arrowroot, divided
- 1/2 cup cashews
Sauce
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 1/2 tbsp avocado oil, divided
- 3–4 whole dried chili peppers, left whole
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp ginger, minced
- 2 medium red bell peppers, cut in 2 cm (3/4-inch) pieces
- 2 small zucchini, cut in 2 cm (3/4-inch) pieces
- 5 green onions, cut in 2 cm (3/4-inch) pieces
- 1 tsp sesame oil, toasted, stirred in off the heat (optional)
To serve
- 5 cups cauliflower rice, fresh or frozen
- a pinch salt
Steps
- Toss the chicken in a bowl with the salt, 1 tablespoon of the aminos, the cider vinegar and 1 tablespoon of the arrowroot. Leave for 10 minutes while you cut the vegetables.
- Toast the cashews in a dry large wok or skillet over medium heat, shaking the pan often, for 3–4 minutes until golden. Tip them onto a plate.
- Whisk the remaining aminos, the broth, balsamic, honey, fish sauce and the last 1/2 tablespoon of arrowroot in a jug until smooth. Set aside.
- Start the cauliflower rice: cook it with the pinch of salt in a large dry skillet over medium-high heat, stirring now and then, for 5–6 minutes, uncovered, until the steam has gone, then keep it warm. At the same time, heat half the oil in the wok over high heat. Stir-fry the chicken in two batches for 4–5 minutes each, until golden and 165°F inside, and lift onto a plate.
- Add the remaining oil, the dried chilies, garlic and ginger and stir for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the red pepper and zucchini and stir-fry for 3–4 minutes until browned at the edges but still crisp.
- Stir the sauce again and pour it into the wok over medium heat with the chicken. Toss for 1–2 minutes until glossy, then stir in the cashews and green onions and, off the heat, the sesame oil. Taste for salt and serve over the cauliflower rice. Lift the whole chilies out before serving. Leftovers keep 3 days in the fridge; reheat in a pan with a splash of water.
Good to know
How do I make it properly hot?
Snap the dried chilies in half so their seeds fall into the oil. A pinch of ground Sichuan pepper in the oil brings the numbing buzz the dish is famous for.
Can I use chicken thighs?
Yes, at about 51 instead of 59. They take a minute longer and stay a bit juicier when reheated.
Is sesame oil paleo?
A strict paleo kitchen leaves out seed oils. It is here as a single teaspoon of seasoning for aroma and not as a cooking oil, which is how most popular paleo versions of this dish use it. If you avoid it, leave it out: the dish still works and is a little less nutty.
Alternative
Per
- Calories
- 117
- Protein
- (38%)
- 11 g
- Fat
- (34%)
- 4 g
- Carbohydrates
- (28%)
- 8 g
- of which sugar
- 4 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sodium
- 285 mg
More meals
Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. How
As written, 2002 kcal goes into the pot and 2093 g of ingredients comes out as about 1718 g of food: 117 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.