Kung Pao Chicken Tacos is a Cooking Light recipe I found in this year's October issue when a friend of mine gave me a stack of magazines to thumb through. Food magazines are a problem for me. I use to love fashion mags, but now my allegiance is to food.
Kung Pao Chicken Tacos
As usual my changes are in pink.
What you need:
6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
3 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1/4 c plus 1 1/2 tsp cornstarch (not even 100% sure I have some)
1/4 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp canola oil
1 1/2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp dark sesame oil (I have light sesame oil)
2 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp sambal oelek (it's an odd ingredient but I already have it)
1 large garlic clove
3 tbsp chopped dry roasted peanuts
3/4 c sliced celery (I guess we won't use this, I forgot to buy it)
8 6-inch corn tortillas
1/3 c sliced green onions
1/2 medium red bell pepper (green is cheaper)
4 lime wedges (1 - I bought 2 limes one for Tortilla Soup and one for this, we have to share)
What to do:
- 1. Place chicken in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add 1 tablespoon soy sauce to bag; seal. Marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes. Remove chicken from bag; discard marinade. Place 1/4 cup cornstarch in a shallow dish. Sprinkle the chicken evenly with salt. Add chicken to cornstarch in dish, and toss chicken to thoroughly coat. Shake off excess cornstarch.
- 2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon canola oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add half of coated chicken; sauté for 6 minutes or until done, turning to brown. Remove chicken from pan using a slotted spoon; drain on paper towels. Repeat the procedure with remaining 1 tablespoon canola oil and coated chicken.
- 3. Combine remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch, remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce, honey, and next 3 ingredients (through sambal oelek) in a microwave-safe bowl, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Microwave at HIGH for 1 1/2 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring twice. Stir in garlic. Combine soy sauce mixture, chicken, peanuts, and celery; toss to coat chicken.
- 4. Toast tortillas under broiler or on a griddle until lightly blistered, turning frequently. Place 2 tortillas on each of 4 plates; divide chicken mixture evenly among tortillas. Top each taco with green onions and bell pepper strips; serve with lime wedges.
I actually wanted to take my own picture of this recipe, but we are having to take family beach pictures worship team pics on Wednesday and it is cutting out every inch of time I had to blog. Boo. Hello scheduled posts! You may be wondering why I said "family beach pictures", well our lovely worship leader whom I wish to kill dearly decided we should wear white.
I'm tempted to show up in my wedding dress just to mess with him.
I have never been one to match people. I refused to play ball as a kid because of the uniforms, and I must say that marching band was a very painful time of my life.
You can bet your bottom dollar this girl is wearing a crazy scarf to counter act the white.
(side note: if we weren't such good friends with the worship leader I probably wouldn't harass him this much)
