I have wanted to do this Kung Pao Chicken Tacos recipe for the longest time.
My friend Simply Reem told me that one of her favorite recipes on Rasa Malaysia is Kung Pao Chicken, one of my favorite Chinese recipes.
She said that she makes it for her family and they all love it, and that her favorite way of eating my Kung Pao Chicken is with tacos. What a great idea, why haven’t I thought about that?!
A couple of months ago, when I met up with my friend SkinnyTaste in New York City, she told me the same thing.
She said that I could be making so many awesome American-friendly Asian recipes, and we talked about Kung Pao Chicken tacos!
So here I am offering up my recipe for the most amazing, delicious, yet healthy Kung Pao Chicken tacos that anyone can whip up in less than 30 minutes for the entire family.
In colder months, this recipe is the surefire way to fire up your palate, and give you some warmth. There is definitely heat in the tacos, but not intense, but just enough to give you some tingling sensation on your tongue.
However, the shredded lettuce and salsa tone down the heat from the Kung Pao Chicken so every bite is absolutely mouthwatering, refreshing, and you just can’t wait to assemble another taco and eat more of them.
You can even make a variation of this recipe by swapping the protein, for example: shrimp. So you can have kung pao shrimp tacos (slurp!), or a combination of kung pao chicken and shrimp tacos.
My mouth waters at the very thought of it. Lucky for me…I have some leftover tacos in the fridge, which I am sure will be ready for another batch of these scrumptious kung pao chicken tacos!
How Many Calories per Serving?
This recipe is only 255 calories per serving.
What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
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Kung Pao Chicken Tacos
Kung Pao Chicken Tacos - amazing tacos with Chinese Kung Pao Chicken. Savory and slightly spicy chicken and roasted peanuts make the tacos so delicious.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 boneless and skinless chicken breasts, cut into small cubes
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 6 slices peeled fresh ginger
- 1/2 small red bell peppers cut into thin strips
- 8 dried red chilies seeded and slice into halves
- 1/2 cup roasted peanuts
- 1 stalk scallion cut into strips
- corn or flour tortilla
- 2 cups shredded cabbage
- cilantro for garnishing
- salsa optional
Marinade:
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
Sauce:
- 1 1/2 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or Chinese black vinegar preferred
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon corn starch
Directions
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1Marinate the chicken with the Marinade, set aside for 10 minutes.
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2Mix all the Sauce ingredients in a small bowl, stir to combine well. Set aside.
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3
Heat up a wok or skillet with the oil, stir fry the ginger until aromatic. Add the red bell peppers and dried red chilies, stir fry until you smell the spicy aroma from the dried chilies. Add the chicken and stir fry continuously until the chicken turn opaque.
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4
Add the roasted peanuts, and stir in the Sauce. When the sauce thickens and the chicken is completely cooked, add the scallions before transferring the Kung Pao Chicken out on a serving platter.
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5
Assemble the tacos by adding some Kung Pao Chicken onto the taco, then add some shredded cabbage and cilantro on top. If you like, you may add some salsa, but I prefer to have my salsa on the side, and having them as a palate cleaner in between each tacos.
Recipe Notes
To prepare Kung Pao Shrimp tacos, can you refer to my very popular Kung Pao shrimp recipe.
Matt Caplis
Hello, in looking the recipe, I think there is a mistake. 1 tablespoon of corn starch mixed with 2 teaspoons of soy sauce doesn’t seem correct. It isn’t enough liquid to dissolve the starch. I went to your kung pao chicken recipe and made that marinade instead and it worked great. The marinade listed in this recipe would be more of a paste.
Matt Caplis
Hello, in looking the recipe, I think there is a mistake. 1 tablespoon of corn starch mixed with 2 teaspoons of soy sauce doesn’t seem correct. It isn’t enough liquid to dissolve the starch. I went to your kung pao chicken recipe and made that marinade instead and it worked great. The marinade listed in this recipe would be more of a paste.
Kristy
Awesome photos! We’d love it if you’d submit it to JalapenoMania.com!
Liz Winter
By “corn or flour tacos”, I’m guess you mean tortillas?
Also, what is “dark soy sauce”? I’ve never heard of it. Is there another name I might find it under. I really want to try this. Your recipes look so awesome!
Rasa Malaysia
Oops you are right. Typo, I meant tortillas. ;) Yes dark soy sauce is also labeled as black soy sauce or thick soy sauce. It’s darker in color. You don’t really need it but it gives the chicken that dark glossy color. I hope to get to try it soon! :)
Liz
Thank you Bee for nice taco recipe.
Krystle(Baking Beauty)
These look so delicious! Would love to try with shrimp too!
Rasa Malaysia
Yes or the combination of shrimp and chicken is fantastic!
Darryl Snow
Genius! One of those simple ideas where you think “How come I didn’t think of that?!”
Everything can be improved by the addition of Gongbao chicken. Fact.
Rasa Malaysia
Darryl, so true, especially now it’s getting colder, this dish warms up my stomach and body!! :)