Legend has it that in the late nineteenth century, the governor of Sichuan province, Ding Baozhen, was missing quite a few of his teeth. One day he ducked out of his palace to eat in a local restaurant, where the chef served him a dish of beautifully chopped up, quickly stir-fried ingredients. The governor was so impressed with the dish (not least because it was easy for him to eat), that he hired the chef full time and christened the recipe with his official name, Kung Pao. Though some people doubt the story, we’re convinced it’s the tooth*. *Sorry, we couldn’t resist that one!
The quantities provided above are averages only.
Boxes and ingredients are packed in facilities that handles Peanut, Nuts, Sesame, Fish, Crustaceans, Milk, Egg, Mustard, Celery, Soya, Gluten and Sulphites. Due to the war in Ukraine, it has been necessary to substitute sunflower oil with rapeseed oil in some products without a label change. The FSA have advised that allergic reactions to rapeseed oil are rare.
1
Brown Basmati Rice
2
Garlic Clove
½
Red Chilli
1.5
Ginger
3
Spring Onion
1
Chestnut Mushrooms
½
Broccoli
3
Soy Sauce
(Contains Cereals containing gluten, Soya)
2
Rice Vinegar
2
Cashew Nuts
(Contains Nuts May contain Sesame, Nuts, Peanut)
Boil a large pot of water for the rice.
Thoroughly rinse the rice under cold water for a minute. Add the rice to the boiling water with 1/4 tsp of salt and cook for arond 20-25 mins until soft. Tip: Once cooked, drain the rice, put back in the pot (off the heat) and cover with a clean tea towel for 5 mins.
Meanwhile, finely chop the garlic and chilli. Peel the ginger with the edge of a spoon and finely chop. Finely slice the spring onions(including the green part) and chop the mushrooms in half, or any monsters into large chunks. Separate the broccoli florets from the stalk and cut them in half. Boil another pot of water for the broccoli. Cook the broccoli for about 3 mins, then drain.
To make the Kung Pao, whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar and 2 tsp of sugar(if you have any) in a small bowl.
Heat a wok or large frying pan over high heat and add 1 tbsp of olive oil. When hot, add the broccoli and cook for 1-2 mins. Add the mushrooms and cook for a further for 1-2 mins without moving the pan. Tip: If you stir the mushrooms too often they won’t get nice and brown!
Add the garlic, chilli(as much as you dare!), ginger and three-quarters of the spring onion to the pan (reserving some of the green bits for later) and cook for 2 mins. Add the Kung Pao mix and cook for a further minute, then remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cashews.
Serve your rice into bowls, top with your Kung Pao and the remaining spring onion. Tuck in!