Kung Pao Chicken

I have attempted a few times to make chinese food and have even posted my recipes. I thought they all tasted pretty good except for the fact that they were VERY salty (which I may or may not have mentioned in my notes about the dinner). So I did a little more research and found out that there are different kinds of soy sauce. The normal soy sauce that you buy in the store is a very salty one. I was actually using a store brand rather than name brand so I'm not sure if that was part of the problem. So I went to 1st Oriental Market, the Asian food store we have here in Orem, and bought dark soy sauce, like the recipes were actually calling for (and I didn't know the difference). Mine actually is called Mushroom Flavored Dark Soy Sauce, and according to my research I believe that all "dark" soy sauces are mushroom flavored. I think you could also try using a reduced sodium soy sauce and it would also be less salty, but I'm not sure because I haven't tried it. So let me know if you have any experience with that. I got this recipe from www.chinesefood-recipes.com and it was really good. A few people who tried it thought it was too spicy, so what I would do to fix that is just to use a few less dried chilies; maybe 6 or 5 rather than 8. So I would consider this recipe to be my first successful experience with Chinese food but I will keep working on it until I feel like I have really mastered it.


3/4 lb. chicken, boned and skinned
2 tbsps. oyster sauce
2 1/2 tbsps. cooking oil
8 small dried red chilies
4 tsps. minced garlic
2 stalks celery, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1−inch squares
1 can (8 oz.) bamboo shoots, sliced and drained
2 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
1/3 cup roasted peanuts (I used cashews)

Sauce:
3 tbsps. Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
1/4 cup Chinese black vinegar or balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 tbsp. dark soy sauce
2 tbsps. hoisin sauce
2 tsp. sesame oil
2 tsps. chili garlic sauce
2 tsps. sugar

1. Cut chicken into 1−inch pieces. Marinade chicken with oyster sauce in a bowl and let stand for 10 minutes.
2. Combine sauce ingredients in a bowl.
3. Place a wok over high heat until hot. Add 2 tablespoons oil, swirling to coat sides. Add chilies and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 10 seconds.
4. Add chicken and stir fry for 2 minutes. Remove chicken and chilies from wok.
5. Add remaining 1/2 tablespoon oil to wok, swirling to coat sides. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Add celery, bell pepper, and bamboo shoots; stir fry for 1 1/2 minutes.
6. Return chicken and chilies to wok; stir fry for 1 minute. Add sauce and bring to a boil. Add cornstarch solution and cook, stirring, until sauce boils and thickens. Add peanuts (or cashews) and stir to coat.