That was my favorite Chinese takeout back when I worked in San Francisco in the early 2000s. I always got the soft chicken stir-fried with broccoli, carrots, and black fungus in a spicy Hunan sauce that made my mouth water.
The chicken breast pieces were always smooth, soft, and velvety, and the sauce was so good with steamed white rice that it was hard to stop eating it.
Fast forward many years later, I constantly miss the dish so I decided to develop a homemade Hunan Chicken recipe.
People love Chinese takeout dishes like Hunan chicken, which has tender chicken, crisp vegetables, and a spicy sauce. But what makes real Hunan chicken? Here are the main ingredients that give this stir-fry its unique flavor.
The Protein: Chicken Breast is Typically Used
Chicken breast without bones or skin is the most common type of protein in Hunan chicken recipes. Chicken thigh or leg meat can also be used. Thin strips or bite-sized pieces of chicken are often used to make cooking quick and even.
To keep the chicken moist and tender, a velveting technique is often employed. The meat is tossed in a marinade of egg white, cornstarch, and sometimes rice wine before cooking. This helps create a silky texture.
The Vegetables: A Mixed Medley Provides Texture
One thing that makes Hunan chicken appealing is that the fresh vegetables give it a lot of different textures. Typical stir-fry veggies include:
- Broccoli florets
- Carrots
- Bell peppers
- Onions
- Mushrooms
- Snap peas
- Water chestnuts
- Baby corn
The vegetables are stir-fried until just crisp-tender before being combined with the sauce, This retains some crunch,
The Sauce: A Spicy, Savory Blend
The sauce is what makes Hunan chicken so good. It has just the right amount of sweet, salty, spicy, and savory flavors. Core ingredients include:
- Soy sauce – For saltiness
- Oyster sauce – Adds savory umami flavor
- Garlic and ginger – Provide aromatic punch
- Rice wine vinegar – Contributes acidity
- Chili bean sauce – Brings signature heat and spice
- Chicken broth – Thins out the sauce
- Cornstarch – Thickens and binds the sauce
- Sugar – Balances out spice and saltiness
The specific ratio of these components can be adjusted to control the desired spice level and flavor profile.
Regional and Personal Touches
While Hunan chicken has some standard ingredients, cooks often tweak recipes based on regional cuisine influences and personal preferences. Some variations include:
- Addition of sesame oil for nuttiness
- Extra chili peppers or pepper flakes for more heat
- Substituting chili garlic sauce for chili bean sauce
- Using brown sugar instead of white sugar
- Splash of rice wine for complexity
- Different thickening agents like arrowroot
So while Hunan chicken has a basic formula, there’s room for customization in each recipe!
Tips On How To Make Hunan Chicken
- To make sure every bite of the chicken is soft and tender, cut the chicken breasts into pieces and mix them with egg white and corn starch. In Chinese cooking, this step is called “velveting,” and it makes sure that the chicken is soft, just like in Chinese restaurants.
- Cut the vegetables in the recipe into uniform-sized pieces. This will ensure they cook evenly during stir-frying.
- Mix the Hunan sauce.
The most important parts of Hunan sauce are listed below. The secret ingredient is chili bean sauce, also known as “Douban Jiang” (豆瓿鉱), which is made from chili peppers and fermented soy bean paste.
- Bottled chili bean sauce or douban jiang
- Chicken broth
- Soy sauce
- Oyster sauce
- Ketchup
- Vinegar
The sauce should be savory with a nice heat from the chili bean sauce. It’s also slightly sour from the ketchup and vinegar. You can mix and make the Hunan sauce in advance as you can freeze it in the refrigerator and use it whenever you want to make this recipe.
Hunan Chicken Vs Szechuan Chicken
Many people are confused with the difference between Hunan Chicken and Szechuan (the correct spelling is “Sichuan”) chicken. Both dishes are completely different. Hunan and Sichuan are two different provinces in China. Hunan cuisine is vastly different from Sichuan food even though both are spicy.
The spiciness of Hunan food stems from the used of the spicy douban jiang or the chili bean sauce. Sichuan food uses a lot of dried red chilies and Sichuan peppercorns.
This is a healthy dish as there are a variety of vegetables.
This recipe is 499 calories per serving.
Hunan Chicken Recipe (Not your average brown sauce!)
FAQ
What is Hunan chicken made of?
Hunan chicken is a stir-fried chicken dish, typically made with boneless chicken, vegetables, and a spicy, savory sauce. The sauce often includes ingredients like soy sauce, garlic, ginger, chili peppers, and sometimes fermented black beans.
What is the difference between Hunan and Szechuan chicken?
What’s the difference between kung pao chicken and Hunan chicken?
Kung Pao Chicken is made with briefly marinated cubes of stir-fried chicken whereas Hunan Chicken is made with pan fried thinly sliced chicken lightly dusted in flour/cornstarch. Kung Pao sauce is savory and spicy like Hunan but it is sweeter and far less sour.
What are the ingredients in Hunan food?
Hunan cuisine is known for its bold, spicy flavors, achieved through ingredients like fresh and dried chilies, garlic, and fermented black beans. Soy sauce, oyster sauce, rice vinegar, and sometimes a touch of sweetness from honey or sugar are also important parts of Hunan food.