So who doesn't love
some Kung Pao Chicken? Well I know my family does, but American style
Chinese food tends to have a lot of calories from sugars, but it does
not have too have all of those unwanted carbs to be delicious. In
this article I am going to show you how to make one of my family's
favorite chicken stir-fry recipes that cuts to carbohydrates to the
bone, but is still retains that great flavor that we all love. The majority of
carbohydrates in this recipe comes from vegetables, primarily onions,
bell peppers, and broccoli. If you choose to use cornstarch in the
chicken marinade then it adds an additional 7 carbs to the total
recipe making the total recipe 8.1 grams of carbs per person. Leaving
out the cornstarch reduces the carbohydrate count to 6.35 grams per
serving.
Kung Pao Chicken
(Yield: 4 Servings)
1 lb chicken thighs,
cubed
1 recipe of chicken
marinade
1 recipe stir fry
sauce
1 cup onion, medium
dice
1 cup red bell
pepper, large dice
1 cup broccoli
florets
Remove the skin and
de-bone the chicken thighs and cut them into 1 to 1 ½ cubes. Place
the chicken into a zip lock bag, and add the marinade and allow it to
marinate for 3 to 4 hours or longer if desired.
When you are ready
to stir-fry, heat a heavy skillet or wok over high heat until a bead
of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds of contact. Add 1 tablespoon
olive oil, then add the chicken, spreading pieces in 1 layer on
bottom as quickly as possible. Cook, undisturbed, letting chicken
begin to brown, 1 minute, then stir-fry until the chicken is just
throughly cooked, about 1 to 2 minutes. You will need to cook the
chicken in small batches. When each batch of the cooked chicken is
done, remove it to a bowl with any liquid that was in the pan, and
repeat the process until you have cooked all of your chicken.
Once the chicken is
cooked, it's time to stir-fry the veggies. Add 1 tablespoon of olive
oil and sauté the onion, and bell peppers in small batches just
until the onions begin to become translucent, then remove them from
the skillet to a bowl with any liquid that was in the pan, and repeat
the process until you have cooked all of your veggies.
One you have stir
fried the chicken and the vegetables, place your broccoli in a
microwave safe bowl and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until is it slightly
aldente (or however you like it). Then combine all the chicken and
vegetables into your skillet or wok and stir fry for 1 minute. Then
add the stir-fry sauce and stir-fry for an additional 30 seconds to 1
minute. Transfer the completed stir-fry to a serving platter or leave
in the skillet like we do and dig in!
Kung Pao Chicken
(With cornstarch in marinade)
Total Recipe –
Calories 1155, protein 88 grams, fat 75 grams, carbohydrates 32.4
Per Serving –
Calories 289, protein 22 grams, fat 18.7, carbohydrates 8.1 grams
Kung Pao Chicken
(Without cornstarch in marinade)
Total Recipe –
Calories 1125, protein 88 grams, fat 75 grams, carbohydrates 25.4
Per Serving –
Calories 281, protein 22 grams, fat 18.7, carbohydrates 6.35 grams
Chicken Marinade
1 tablespoon soy
sauce
1 tablespoon canola
oil
1 tablespoon Chinese
rice wine (preferably Shaoxing)
1 tablespoon
cornstarch (optional)
1 teaspoon finely
grated peeled garlic
1 teaspoon ginger
paste or fresh grated ginger
½ teaspoon salt
Combine all
ingredients in a small bowl and mix with a fork until throughly
combined, then add it to the zip lock bag that contains your chicken.
Chicken Marinade
Recipe (With cornstarch)
Total Recipe –
Calories 170, protein 1.58 grams, fat 14.1 grams, carbohydrates 9.45
grams
Per Tablespoon –
Calories 34, protein 0.32 grams, fat 2.8 grams, carbohydrates 1.89
gram
Chicken Marinade
Recipe (Without cornstarch)
Total Recipe –
Calories 140, protein 1.58 grams, fat 14.1 grams, carbohydrates 2.45
grams
Per Tablespoon –
Calories 28, protein 0.32 grams, fat 2.8 grams, carbohydrates 0.49
gram
Stir Fry Sauce
¼ cup peanuts,
chopped (optional)
2 tablespoons canola
oil
1 tablespoon soy
sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese
rice wine (preferably Shaoxing)
1 teaspoon oyster
sauce
1 teaspoon minced
garlic
1 teaspoon ginger
paste
1 teaspoon red
pepper flakes
1 drop liquid
sucralose or 1 teaspoon erythritol
¼ teaspoon black
pepper
Combine ingredients
in a small bowl and set aside until ready to use.
Stir Fry Sauce
Recipe (Without peanuts)
Calories 273,
protein 1.58 grams, fat 28.1 grams, carbohydrates 4.33 grams
Per Tablespoon –
Calories 54.6, protein 0.36 grams, fat 5.62 grams, carbohydrates 0.86
grams
Stir Fry Sauce
Recipe (With peanuts)
Calories 480,
protein 10.58 grams, fat 46.1 grams, carbohydrates 7.33 grams
Per Tablespoon –
Calories 96, protein 2.1 grams, fat 9.22 grams, carbohydrates 1.46
grams
Chef's Note: If you
decide to make the sauce with the peanuts, you will need to add 3
grams of carbohydrates to the total recipe nutritional count as the
nutritional information in this article is listed without the
peanuts. While the ¼ cup of peanuts do increase the carb count, they
add 9 grams of protein and 18 grams of fat to the total recipe. An
addition that I think is well worth adding them, but they ultimate
choice is yours.
Conclusion
This is a great
chicken stir-fry recipe that is loaded with goodness and is a great
low carbohydrate high fat (LCHF) option for when you have a hankering
for some great American style Chinese food. If you are following a
strict LCHF or Ketogenic (Keto) diet, you may want to omit the
cornstarch as it brings the total carbohydrate count per serving from
8.1 carbs to 6.35 carbs for the meal. My family loves American
Chinese food, so you will probably begin to see more LCHF / Keto
recipes of this type on the blog as I begin to convert our favorite
take-out recipes better suit of LCHF eating regimen.
Typically Kung Pao
chicken has quite a bit more bite than this recipe, but I need to
keep it family friendly. If you like your Kung Pao chicken to have
more 'Pow' (I know bad pun) then double the amount of amount of red
pepper flakes, or simply increase to suit your individual needs. As
always, I hope that you have found this article informative and
beneficial for you and your family, if so please take the time to
share it with your friends so that they can benefit as well. Do not
forget to follow us on our Facebook page 'CulinaryYouLCHF' or add us
to your circle on Goggle+.
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