This Szechuan Chicken recipe is like the delicious classic you’re looking for, but is super-quick, making it perfect for your stir-fry night!
This Szechuan Chicken recipe is full of flavor and can be ready to eat in about half an hour. Coating the chicken in cornstarch before frying ensures a crispy texture outside, and juicy inside. The veggies are all tender crisp, and everything is complemented by the spicy, savory sauce. You can adjust the amount of chili peppers and Szechuan peppercorn to make it perfect, whether you’re a spice enthusiast or prefer a milder taste.
Scroll down to read more about how it all comes together or click here to jump straight down to the recipe.
![Cast iron pan with szechuan chicken with peppers and chilis.](https://thecookful.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Szechuan-Chicken-1200x1800-1-680x1020.jpg)
What is Szechuan Chicken?
Szechuan Chicken is a stir fried dish that originated in the Szechuan province of China. (You may also see Sichuan as the spelling in some places, it’s referring to the same province and dish.) It’s spicy with a very unique ingredient (Szechuan peppercorns!). These peppercorns create a tingling feeling and slight numbness in the mouth that is said to allow you to taste the different flavors of the chilis, rather than just the effects of the spiciness.
Don’t let the thought of all that heat scare you away though! It’s absolutely delicious and you can moderate the spice to your level of comfort by decreasing or increasing the number of chilis.
What Are Szechuan Peppercorns?
So, Szechuan Peppercorns aren’t actually peppercorns, nor are they even related to peppers. They’re the berries of the prickly ash pear which is native to the Szechuan province of China.
They have a unique flavor that’s slightly citrusy with a hint of pine. They’re famous for their mouth numbing effect which is a counterpoint to the heat produced by chilis. By numbing a bit of the heat, you’re able to taste more of the other flavors flavors present in the chilis. So intriguing, right? If your store doesn’t sell Szechuan Peppercorns, you can get them on Amazon here.
Tip: If you’re not able to find Szechuan Peppercorns, you can replace them with a combination of black pepper, coriander seeds, and lemon zest. Mix 2 teaspoons black peppercorns, 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds, and 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest. This won’t give you the numbing affect, but you will get the citrusy, peppery flavor.
Tips For Perfect Stir-Frying
The most important thing about making any stir fry is to have everything prepped prior to starting to cook. Just like with our Lamb Stir Fry recipe, the cooking times are quick and don’t leave a lot of time in between processes to chop, combine, or stir.
While prepping your ingredients, it’s also a good idea to arrange them on a plate or a baking sheet in the order that they are used in the recipe. This not only gives you a visual tool to ensure that you have all of your ingredients, it also makes it very easy to recall the order that the ingredients are added to the skillet.
When I first learned how to make Szechuan Chicken stir fry, one of things I found interesting is that you cut each of the ingredients in the same fashion. So, if you cut the chicken in cubes, you also cut the vegetables in cubes. If you cut the chicken in strips, you cut the veggies in strips. For this recipe, I like chunks of chicken. Which means the onion and red pepper are cut into a similar shapes as well.
Prepping The Ingredients
Like any recipe, there are several ways to create this dish. My favorite way is to coat the chicken in cornstarch and then fry it in hot oil. I also like to keep the vegetables very simple and opt for red peppers to carry that red theme through the dish. If you prefer green bell peppers or another color, you can use any of those or a combination.
The number of chilis that are used can be tailored to your taste. I like to start with 15 dried red chili peppers, because my tendencies are on the spicier side. I soak them for 15 minutes in hot water to help release more flavor. Be careful not to soak too long as the chilis will start to get bitter. If you don’t have access to the dried chilis, you can use red pepper flakes for heat, but you can purchase dried red chili peppers online.
NOTE: I do like to warn my family and friends not to eat the dried chilis unless they really LOVE a big hit of spice. They’re in the dish for cooking and then you remove them before eating. You can also remove the seeds to better control the spice levels.
Combine the ingredients for the sauce in a medium bowl – soy sauce, chili garlic sauce (like this one), rice wine, brown sugar, sesame oil, and cornstarch – and stir until the sugar is dissolved. You will need to stir again just before adding it to the skillet. As the sauce sits, the cornstarch settles out of suspension, so it’s important to stir again just before pouring it over the chicken and vegetable mixture. Set that aside for now.
Coat the chicken pieces with plain cornstarch (not the cornstarch you mixed with other ingredients). Using a large resealable plastic bag makes this process quick and pretty mess-free but you can also use a mixing bowl. Shake the bag with cornstarch and chicken, turning over a couple of times to ensure that all of the chicken is coated evenly.
How To Cook The Chicken
When frying the chicken, you’ll likely have to work in batches. I usually do three batches when I’m making this dish. It’s important not to crowd the pan so that the chicken cooks evenly and quickly. Also, allow the oil to come back up to 350˚F in between batches.
After the chicken has been fried and transferred to a paper-towel-lined plate or baking sheet, discard the frying oil being very careful to avoid burns. I use a mesh strainer specifically designed to filter out bits of coating and food so that I can reuse my frying oil.
Note that if you don’t want to fry your chicken in all that oil, you can just put a tablespoon or two of oil in a skillet and pan-fry it instead. It won’t get as light and crisp, but it’s still very tasty.
Stir-Frying The Veggies
After that is where the stir-frying actually starts. Return the skillet to the stove-top and heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat until it’s shimmering. Add the onions and stir fry until they just start to soften, 1 – 2 minutes max. Then add the red peppers and stir fry until they just start to soften. This shouldn’t take any longer than 3 – 4 minutes total. The most important thing to remember when stir-frying is that the vegetables are not cooked completely through. There should be a nice crunch left once the dish is completed.
The aromatics – the chilis, Szechuan peppercorns, garlic, and ginger – go in next and are cooked until they just start to become fragrant, about 1 – 2 minutes. Be careful, the capsaicin from the chilis starts to waft into the air and it can get a little spicy.
Add the cooked chicken, pour over the spicy sauce, stir until everything is coated, and then call everyone in for dinner. This dish can be served over rice or rice noodles.
More Great Chicken Dinners
You can browse all my fantastic chicken recipes or bookmark some of the favorites below to try next:
- Air Fryer Chinese Chicken
- Juicy Pulled Chicken Recipe
- Instant Pot Honey Bourbon Chicken
- Easy Grilled Chicken Kebobs
- Best Chicken Meatloaf Recipe
Podcast Episode: Making Szechuan Chicken
Listen to me explain briefly about how to make this recipe, with some great tips along the way, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
Print![Cast iron pan with szechuan chicken with peppers and chilis.](https://thecookful.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Szechuan-Chicken-1200x1200-1.jpg)
Szechuan Chicken Recipe
Try garnishing with sesame seeds, green onions, and cashews and serving over rice or noodles to complete the meal.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Entrée
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients
- 1 small onion, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 15 dried red chilis, soaked in warm water for 15 minutes*
- 1 Tbsp. Szechuan peppercorns, crushed**
- 3 cloves garlic, sliced
- 1 tsp. minced ginger
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp. chili garlic sauce
- 3 Tbsp. rice wine
- 2 Tbsp. brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp. sesame oil
- 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp. cornstarch, divided
- 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast or chicken thighs, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- Oil for frying chicken
- 2 Tbsp. canola or vegetable oil
Instructions
- Place the following prepped ingredients on a plate or rimmed baking dish in the order that they are added to the skillet so that they’re ready to go: onions, red peppers, dried chilis, Szechuan peppercorns, garlic, and ginger. Set aside.
- Make the sauce: In a medium bowl whisk together soy sauce, chili garlic sauce, rice wine, brown sugar, sesame oil, and 1 tablespoon of the cornstarch, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Set aside.
- Measure the remaining 1/2 cup of cornstarch into a large resealable plastic bag or medium bowl. Add the chicken and toss to coat all pieces thoroughly.
- In a deep skillet, add enough oil to come up 2 inches. Heat over medium-high heat to 350˚F.
- Add chicken without crowding (you may need to do this in 2-3 batches), frying until golden brown and cooked through, 5 – 7 minutes per batch, using tongs to flip pieces over occasionally. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate.
- Once all chicken has been cooked, discard frying oil, and wipe out skillet, being very careful to avoid burns.
- Add 2 tablespoons of fresh oil to the skillet and heat over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the onions, stir-frying until just tender-crisp, 1-2 minutes.
- Next, add the red peppers and cook, stir-frying until just tender-crisp, 1-2 minutes
- Add the chilis, Szechuan peppercorns, garlic, and ginger, and cook while stirring until fragrant, about 1 – 2 minutes.
- Add the chicken and stir to distribute through the vegetables.
- Whisk the sauce for a few seconds to redistribute the cornstarch through it. Pour sauce over chicken and vegetables, stirring to coat.
- Bring to a boil and cook until sauce is just thickened, about 1 minute. Remove dried chilies or warn diners that they are difficult to chew and very spicy and perhaps should not be eaten.
Love this recipe? I’d appreciate it if you could scroll down and add a *5 star rating* to help others know they’ll love it as well!
Notes
*The number of chilis can be increased or decreased, depending on spice level preference.
**If unable to find Szechuan peppercorns, you can substitute a mix of 2 teaspoons black peppercorns, 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds, and 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest.
![Szechuan Chicken](https://thecookful.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Szechuan-Chicken-1200x1800-1.jpg)
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