Kung Pao Chicken in the Instant Pot , is a favorite Chinese style dish. Chicken along with peppers are tossed in a yummy umami sauce and cooked to perfection.
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What is Kung Pao Chicken
Kung Pao Chicken is originally from the Sichuan province of China. It is traditionally cooked in a large hot wok with Sichuan peppercorns, Sichuan chili peppers, garlic, peanuts, leeks and Shaoxing wine.
The dish is named after Ding Baozhen a governor of Sichuan Province. It has also different versions in china itself. However western Kung Pao Chicken is very famous from there.
Ingredients:
Chicken - Use boneless chicken thighs or breast pieces. Chop them into small sized cubes and use.
Soy Sauce - Recommend using dark and light soy sauce for this recipe. It a lovely umami flavor to the chicken. For a gluten free version you may also use tamari sauce
Hoisin sauce - Gives a perfect blend of taste. You can also substitute it with oyster sauce
Rice wine vinegar - This is very mandatory as it helps in balancing all the other sauces.
Onion - Chop them into cube and use them to the dish.
Bell Pepper - Adds a lovely crunch and beautiful pop of color to the chicken.
Peanuts- Gives a lovely crunch to the dish
Ginger and garlic - Adds more flavor to the recipe.
Corn starch - helps in thickening and gives the glossy texture to the dish.
Dry Red Chili - adds a extra spice kick to the dish.
Green Onions - Provide a beautiful garnish and flavor to the dish.
How to make Kung Pao Chicken in Instant Pot
1.Add all the ingredients under the sauce section to a bowl. Whisk well and let everything combine. Set aside.
2. In another mixing bowl add evenly cubed chicken and add the ingredients under to marinate section. Let it marinate for 15-30 mins.
3. Switch on the Instant Pot in saute mode. Add oil let it heat up. Next add marinated chicken and ¼ cup water.
4. Combine well and close the Instant Pot. Press cancel and select pressure cook mode. Select 5 mins in high pressure. Once the timer goes off. Do a quick release and open the Instant Pot. The chicken is now cooked. Remove the chicken from the Instant Pot along with the liquid.
5. Put the Instant Pot back in saute mode. Add Oil let it heat up. Add ginger and garlic. Saute for 30 secs. Next add Onions and saute until they are soft.
6. And then add cubes Peppers. I am using red , green and yellow. Use any as per your preference. Saute for 2-3 mins so they are soft.
7. Next add roasted peanuts and dry red chilli. Saute for another 30 secs.
8. Now add the combined sauce. Mix everything together and let it cook for another 1 min.
9. Finally add the cooked chicken along with the liquid. Give a quick mix and cook for a min.
10. Dissolve 1 tsp of corn flour in 1 tbsp of water and add the corn flour slurry. In a min the mixture thickens up. Switch off the Instant Pot at this time.
11. Sprinkle some spring onion greens at this time. Instant Pot Kung Pao chicken is now ready.
Tips & Variations
You can also use more vegetables if you prefer. Zucchini and leeks works well too.
The dish is high on sodium due to the addition of sauces. You can use low sodium soy sauce to balance it and adjust the saltiness.
The marination of chicken gives them a beautiful color , so highly recommend doing that. Marinate for at least 30 mins.
Serving Options
Kung Pao Chicken makes a complete meal with some jasmine rice or noodles. You can also serve them as a filling with the lettuce wraps.
Storage Options
Keeps good for 5 days in the fridge. I do not recommend freezing as we cook the chicken in sauce, it tends to get soggy. You can simply microwave to reheat the chicken, If its too thick add 1 or 2 tbsp water combine and then reheat.
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📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Kung Pao Chicken
Standard 1 cup measures 240 ml
Equipment
- Instant Pot
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
To Marinate
- 500 gm Chicken Boneless chicken cut into cubes
- 2 tbsp Soy Sauce
- 1 tbsp Rice Vinegar
- 1 tbsp Oil
Sauces
- 1 tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
- 2 tbsp Light Soy Sauce
- 2 tbsp Rice Vinegar
- 1 tbsp Sesame Oil
- 1 tbsp Granulated Sugar
- 1 tbsp Sriracha Sauce
Other Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Oil
- 5 clove Garlic
- 1 inch Ginger
- 5 Dried Red Chilli
- 1 Onion Medium sized, Cut into Cubes
- 2 Bell Pepper Medium sized ,Cut into Cubes
- ¼ cup Water
- 1 tbsp Corn Flour
- 4 tbsp Green Onions
- ¼ cup Roasted Peanuts
- Salt as needed
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients under the sauce section to a bowl.
- Whisk well and let everything combine. Set aside.
- In another mixing bowl add evenly cubed chicken and add the ingredients under to marinate section. Let it marinate for 15-30 mins.
- Switch on the Instant Pot in saute mode. Add oil let it heat up. Next add marinated chicken and ¼ cup water.
- Combine well and close the Instant Pot. Press cancel and select pressure cook mode. Select 5 mins in high pressure.
- Once the timer goes off. Do a quick release and open the Instant Pot. The chicken is now cooked. Remove them from the Instant Pot.
- Put the Instant Pot back in saute mode. Add Oil let it heat up. Add ginger and garlic. Saute for 30 secs. Next add Onions and saute until they are soft.
- And then add cubes Peppers. I am using red , green and yellow. Use any as per your preference. Saute for 2 mins so they are soft.
- Next add roasted peanuts and dry red chilli. Saute for another 30 secs.
- Now add the combined sauce. Mix everything together and let it cook for another 1 min.
- finally add the cooked chicken along with the liquid. Give a quick mix and cook for a min.
- Dissolve 1 tsp of corn flour in 1 tbsp of water and add the corn flour slurry. In a min the mixture thickens up. Switch off the Instant Pot at this time.
- Sprinkle some spring onion greens at this time. Instant Pot Kung Pao chicken is now ready.
Nutrition
Disclaimer: I am not a nutritionist, the nutrition value provided here is an estimate. It will vary based on the quantity and brands of the products used.
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