This Spicy Szechuan chicken is hot and delicious and impresses everyone with its awesome flavor and taste. If you heavily rely on takeouts for Asian food, this is an easy recipe to start making your favorites in the convenience of your kitchen.
This authentic Szechuan chicken recipe is easy to make in under 20 minutes, even from scratch. Additionally, the ingredients are readily available in most stores in the United States. Perfect to eat with rice, noodles, or soup.
It's a fast and super easy recipe for quick dinners. This recipe is a blessing for a family dinner or a large gathering with a restaurant-style Asian dinner. This spicy Szechuan chicken is the one homemade solution for spicy cravings.
As I have already discussed, this recipe does not take much time to prepare and cook. All that is required is you should have the ingredients handy and ready.
If searching for other Chinese recipes, you may look into Tofu Steak, Best Vegetarian Wonton, Teriyaki Chicken, and Mushroom Vegetable noodles.
What is Szechuan chicken?
This spicy chicken recipe belongs to the famous Chinese cuisine called Szechuan, known for its spiciness. However, It also called us Sichuan or Schezwan in the other parts of the world.
The authentic recipe is super fiery and calls for unique Chinese ingredients like mirin and Szechuan peppercorns, which are not accessible for many here. Hence, this recipe attempts to subtle the spiciness to suit North American palates and customize the ingredients by preserving the original taste.
We love these Schezuan recipes because of their right combination of Chinese sauces. You can find them easily on the international aisles in the stores.
It is best to serve with dishes like spicy garlic noodles.
What does this taste like?
This spicy Szechuan chicken tastes hot and spicy and hits the mouth, but it is delightful that we keep asking for more. It can take a prominent place in the party or potluck and disappear fast in the crowd.
Pro Tips
- Chicken breast meat is excellent for making this recipe.
- Marination is optional, but I feel marination makes the chicken more flavorful.
- Vegetables are also optional, but the vegetables add crunchiness and are more colorful.
- Like any other Chinese recipe, this spicy Szechuan chicken recipe also takes less time to make.
- The recipe requires rice vinegar, and some of my readers ask for a substitute for rice vinegar. The rice vinegar brings a unique and beautiful flavor to the recipe, and I have not found any equivalent replacement so far. I will update this recipe with its perfect substitution if I find any.
- Adjust the chili garlic sauce according to your taste.
How to make spicy Szechuan chicken
You can make either the store-bought bottled Szechuan sauce or the homemade one. Making them from scratch is like a breeze, and suitable for beginners as well. Make it bulk or in small quantity for single usage; both are easy and convenient.
The ingredients
Chicken. Boneless skinless chicken performs well in this recipe. But for them into bitesize cubes for the maximum sauce coat.
Soy sauce. Use light or dark soy sauce, depending on the availability. Dark soy has a depth of flavor and is slightly salty compared to the light version.
Chili garlic sauce. A versatile Chinese readymade sauce is beneficial for many recipes. If you are a fan of Asian food, this is a small worthy investment.
Corn starch. The Chinese-style thickening agent also gives a glossy, pleasing finish to this Asian spicy side dish.
Cooking oil. I made it with vegetable oil. However, it can be substituted with neutral cooking oil like canola or corn. I prefer making it with sesame seed oil for more authentic, robust flavors.
Mixed vegetables. Broccoli, bell peppers, green bean, onion, and carrot does compliments well here. To make this more eye-catching, choose colorful veggies like red bell peppers.
The recipe directions
For the spicy Szechuan chicken marination, add 3 tablespoon of soy sauce, rice vinegar, and salt and allow it to marinate for 30 minutes.
To make the Szechuan sauce, add 4 tablespoon of low-sodium soy sauce in a small mixing bowl, 1 tablespoon of chili garlic sauce, 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar, and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. Combine all these ingredients and set aside for later use.
Add 3 tablespoon of cooking oil in a heavy-bottomed pan, followed by chopped garlic, and then the marinated chicken. In the medium to high heat, fry them until the chicken gets cooked. Now add the vegetables and saute for a minute. Now add the kept-aside sauce and bring it to a boil. Switch off the flame when the gravy starts thickening to your required consistency.
Serve hot along with white rice.
The recipe FAQ
Is this recipe freeze-friendly? Yes, this spicy Szechuan chicken is best for meal prep as well. Make in large batches, and store in individual serving portions. Which helps for longer storing time.
How to store? Always prefer airtight containers for refrigeration or freezing. Ziplock bags or freezer-safe containers are perfect. For the best results, immediately transfer to the containers once cooking is done and cooled down to room temperature.
How long does it take to store? It is good to use within 4 days when refrigerated and within 2 months when frozen.
Why should I make the Szechuan sauce instead of ready-made? Because it is easy to use and economical to make at home. Also, the work involved is very minimal, which is not worth paying the readymade.
Printable recipe card
Spicy Szechuan chicken
Ingredients
For marination
- 1 lb chicken
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- ¼ teaspoon rice vinegar
The main ingredients
- 4 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 4 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 1 cup broccoli florets
Instructions
- Marinate the chicken for 30 minutes with 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar. And set aside.
- To make the szechuan sauce, in a mixing bowl, add soy sauce, chili garlic sauce, rice vinegar and cornstarch. Combine all the ingredients. And set aside.
- In a heavy bottomed pan, add 3 tablespoon of vegetable oil and minced garlic. Saute them for a minute.
- In the medium to high heat, add marinated chicken and cook until they done well and perfect.
- Now add the broccoli florets and saute for a minute.
- Add kept aside sauce and bring it to boil.
- Once the gravy reached its required consistency, switch off the flame and serve hot.
Nutrition
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Ron
I also love this chicken dish. Have you ever used Sichuan pepper in this dish? I toast and then crush it into a powder. Sichuan pepper (not really a peeper) gives your mouth a numbing feeling, so you can really spice down.
Sujatha Muralidhar
Yeah, I use them often in my kitchen. But in this recipe, I really wanted to minimize the ingredients. And I avoided using Sichuan peppers as it may not be available to many of my readers. Thanks for noticing it and very glad you loved this recipe.