I really like this method because it’s much more economical and adds a lot less fat into the food. To my surprise, that turned out to be plenty enough. This time I only used 2 tablespoons of peanut oil. Unlike for example in Szechuan Chicken recipe, or the Hunan Beef recipe, I used neither the deep-frying nor the shallow-frying methods to cook the Hunan chicken.

This way I get the meat that is perfectly cooked, tender and juicy. As soon as the chicken is ready I dump it onto a large ceramic platter to cool down. An instant read thermometer comes really handy here. I then continue stir-frying until the temperature inside the largest pieces reaches 160F. I cut chicken breasts into about 1-inch pieces, lay them in one layer inside the wok and cook them over a fairly high heat on one side for about 1 minute until nicely caramelized, then flip to the other side and cook for another minute or so, undisturbed. I came to love that wok so much that I use it for practically everything that needs pan frying. A while ago I bought a Korean made non-stick, flat bottom wok (it’s very similar to this one) to cook Asian dishes. To cook the chicken I suggest using a wok. When cooked right, it tastes much better than red chicken meat. My favorite meat for making Hunan chicken is breast meat. I get compliments on my cooking very regularly, but that one was very special to me. My 7-year-old daughter after she finished eating this chicken for lunch said “Daddy, the chicken was so!… so!… so!…” She was overwhelmed with emotions and had a hard time finding the right word to describe how good she thought the chicken tasted. This is a traditional Hunan style chicken recipe, which is different from westernized Hunan recipes that tend to be overly fatty, sweet and gloppy.

This chicken is not only delicious but also healthy and light. Tender and juicy pieces of beautifully caramelized, richly flavored pieces of Hunan chicken tossed with vegetables roasted with garlic and ginger.

Hunan chicken menu