This time of year, the Crock Pot and One Pot recipes look more and more appealing. I want as much flavor with as little effort as humanly possible when the holidays approach and the temperature plummets. This time of year, I don't have the time or the energy to do much that doesn't revolve around Christmas shopping or working-- in fact, I put mascara on this morning for the first time in a while and I'm awfully proud of myself for that five-second investment in looking marginally presentable.
Anyway, because the cold and the calendar are kicking my butt this month, my new crock pot has become one of my dear pals. The great thing about befriending a crock pot this December is that it will make delicious food for you and not expect a present in return. That's real friendship.
Speaking of friendship, my good friend Allison came down to visit me the other day and try this Crock Pot Kung Pao Chicken, because I told her it would be spicy and we're both fans of heat. Don't worry, though, if you don't too much of a kick to your Kung Pao, you can use a few less peppers and you'll be AOK.
I keep thinking about the pepper spray burrito commercial now. "I like it spicy, but not like uuuuulgh spicy!" That commercial cracks me up.
Do you have a commercial that makes you laugh no matter how often you see it? My mom has probably seen the Sprint screaming goat commercial 100 times now and she snort-laughs at it every single time. She even laughs about the fact that she knows she will laugh at it. She's a gem.
You may or may not have noticed that this Crock Pot Kung Pao Chicken has cashews in it, when it's supposed to have peanuts. I ran out of peanuts. It's cold. I was not going to the grocery store for a second time in 24 hours. Let's say I did it on purpose to show that this dish is super versatile.
It really is, though. You can change up the nuts (or use none), and pretty much use any vegetable that you've got laying around in your refrigerator. I bet zucchini or broccoli would be great! I just used peppers and onions because I couldn't remember what kind of vegetables Allie liked, and my motto is "when in doubt, leave it out."
And while I'm not sure if Allie would have been on board with more veggies, I do know that she was a big fan of this Crock Pot Kung Pao Chicken the way it was. (She ate three bowls, but don't tell her I told you because she may not be a fan of me sharing this information.) Give it a try, and I know you'll love it, too!
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Crock Pot Kung Pao Chicken
- Total Time: 4 hours 15 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1" cubes
- Salt and pepper
- 2 tablespoons oil
- ½ cup low sodium chicken broth
- ⅓ cup low sodium soy sauce
- ⅓ cup balsamic vinegar or Chinese black vinegar
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 6-10 dried red chili peppers, split and seeds removed (adjust according to desired heat level)
- 1 orange bell pepper, sliced
- ½ medium white onion, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced or grated
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- Peanuts or cashews, to top
- Green onion, to garnish
- Rice, to serve
Instructions
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat (or, if you have a multicooker you can just do it right in the crock pot, which is awesome). Season the chicken breast with salt and pepper and saute until browned on all sides, about 4 minutes. Add the chicken to the crock pot.
- Add in the chicken broth, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, sugar, and hoisin sauce. Give the pot a light stir. Then, add in the chilis, bell pepper, onion, garlic, and ginger, and stir once more. Cover and cook on low heat for 4 hours.
- About 30 minutes before you've finished cooking (at the 3 hour and 30 minute mark), combine equal parts water and cornstarch (about 2 tablespoons of each) in a small bowl, whisking together until smooth. Add the slurry to the crock pot and mix well. Continue to cook for another 30 minutes, or until sauce has thickened.
- While you wait for the sauce to thicken, slice your green onions in half, longways. Keep slicing until you have thin strips. Place the green onions in a bowl of ice water and let sit. This will make them curl up. Pictures of this process are also on the Spicy Fried Shrimp post.
- Serve the Crock Pot Kung Pao Chicken over rice with peanuts or cashews on top and the curled green onion to garnish.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 4 hours
Thao @ In Good Flavor says
This looks amazing and pack full of flavors! Your photographs are stunning! And I have to admit it, the Zesty Guy from the Kraft commercial... the one where his shirt gets incinerated off his body while he cooks. It's so campy and makes me laugh every time.
Ezekiel says
At which step are the dried chili peppers added?
Scott says
I am guessing at the same step as the bell pepper, onion, garlic, and ginger.
maria says
step #2
Ezekiel says
Ninja edit on me! Step 2, alright.
Millie l Add A Little says
This looks fantastic!
Liz @ Floating Kitchen says
This looks delicious and oh so comforting. It's definitely crock pot season!
Susan says
I love the ingredients in this recipe, and wonder how well this would work in my wok. Have you, or anyone out there tried this recipe as a quick stir fry? Thanks!
Susan says
OK, I tried this tonight in the wok and it turned out great. First off, the sauce is AWESOME. Very flavorful combination of ingredients Morgan. Also, as suggested in the post, I went with more veggies (added cabbage, which works for the stir-fry, but maybe not the crock-pot). Turned out great. Next time, I'm going crock pot all the way, because I love easy too 🙂 Thanks for the great recipe.
Jay says
Trying the recipe today. Any idea of the calories per serving? Looks like it would be low. Looking forward to it!
Kat says
I can hardly believe I made such delicious Kung Pao Chicken in my crockpot! I made a few minor substitutions - small brown onion for 1/2 medium white, sucralose for sweetener and fresh hot peppers + crushed red pepper for heat. The first time I put the chicken in the crockpot without sauteeing it and decided to just turn the crockpot on, it was still good, but with the sautee is even better. The first time I added a lot of veggies to the crockpot and it watered down the sauce a lot and I had to reduce it. I like it much better cooking most of the veggies seperately and adding them just before serving. Thanks for posting!
Pam says
Thanks so much for this amazing recipe! I made this tonight and it turned out awesome! So much flavor and it was a huge hit in my house, we are fighting over who gets to take the leftovers to work tomorrow for lunch! I didn't change a thing and it turned out delicious! Thanks so much!!
Collyn says
I followed this almost exactly (used cashews instead of peanuts as well). I wasn't sure what kind of dried red chilis to use so I googled it and most Kung pao chicken recipes call for tsin tsin chilis, which I could not find at my regular grocery store so instead I used dried arbol chilis. The only other difference is I sautéed my bell pepper with oil in a skillet towards the end and threw it in the slow cooker the final 10 minutes. Also I roasted my cashews in the same skillet at the end. This dish turned out AMAZING and was a BIG hit. I definitely plan on making it again in the future!
Collyn says
Lastly I browned my chicken and did most of my chopping the night before and then refrigerated it until I was ready to throw it in the slow cooker to save myself time!
Brian says
Second time I made this. Threw some mushrooms in and went to 4 peppers instead of 8. Great both times.
Summer says
I love this recipe... where is the nutritional values?