Juicy chicken in a starchy coating, crispy vegetables, and a thick, glossy sauce with three types of chili make up this honest, spicy mix that tastes best served on potato pancakes fried in lard.
This recipe is prepared in a large deep pan or wok, and the quantities given make a truly generous batch. If you’re not cooking for a crowd, you can make about a third of the portion. It’s important not to overcook the vegetables and to mix the starch into the sauce just before pouring it into the pan.
What You’ll Need
For the Chicken:
- 1.2 kg chicken breasts,
- potato starch for coating,
- salt to taste,
- ground black pepper to taste.
For the Vegetable Mix:
- 3 large red onions,
- 3 large fresh bell peppers,
- 2 large carrots,
- 3–4 large mushrooms,
- 3 fresh chili peppers.
For the Devil’s Sauce:
- 800 ml water,
- 7 tablespoons soy sauce,
- 2 tablespoons sriracha sauce,
- 1 tablespoon crushed chili,
- 2 heaping teaspoons chili peppers pickled in oil,
- 1–1.5 tablespoons potato starch for thickening.
For Frying and Finishing:
- 3 spring onions,
- oil for frying the meat,
- potato pancakes fried in lard as a side.
Step-by-Step Preparation:
1. Preparing the Chicken: Clean the chicken breasts and cut them into neat cubes. Season the meat with salt and pepper, then thoroughly coat in potato starch, which helps keep the meat juicy inside and contributes to the right texture of the finished mix.
2. Chopping the Vegetables: Slice the bell peppers into strips, cut the mushrooms into cubes, and cut the peeled red onions into eighths. Slice the chili peppers into rings. Peel the carrots, cut them into thin slices, and then into fine strips.
3. Preparing the Spicy Sauce: In a separate bowl, mix water, soy sauce, sriracha, crushed chili, and pickled chili peppers in oil. Leave the potato starch aside for now, so it doesn’t settle at the bottom of the mixture.
4. Frying the Meat: Heat oil in a large deep pan or wok. Quickly fry the starch-coated chicken cubes until golden. Don’t overcrowd the pan, so the meat fries quickly instead of stewing.
5. Sautéing the Vegetables: Add all the chopped vegetables to the fried meat. Toss or stir occasionally and sauté together for about 5–7 minutes. The vegetables should soften slightly but remain pleasantly crisp.
6. Thickening the Sauce: Just before use, thoroughly mix 1–1.5 tablespoons of potato starch into the prepared liquid mixture. Pour the sauce into the pan and, stirring constantly, let it bubble for about 3–5 minutes, until it thickens, darkens, and becomes glossy, thick, and slightly translucent.
7. Finishing and Serving: Finely chop the spring onions, stir them into the finished chicken mix, and remove the pan from the heat. Serve the dish hot on crispy homemade potato pancakes fried golden in lard.
How to Keep the Vegetables Crisp
Add the vegetables only after the meat is fried and leave them in the pan for just the recommended 5–7 minutes. The bell peppers, carrots, onions, and mushrooms will soften slightly but won’t lose their texture. The combination of crisp vegetables, juicy meat, and thick sauce is key to the final mix.
Why Add Starch to the Sauce at the End
Potato starch tends to settle at the bottom, so mix it thoroughly into the liquid base just before pouring it into the pan. Keep stirring while the mixture bubbles. This ensures the sauce thickens evenly and coats the meat and vegetables well.
How to Adjust the Portion Size
The 1.2 kg of chicken breasts, along with plenty of vegetables and 800 ml of water, make a very generous batch. If you’re not cooking for a party or a large group, you can use about a third of all the listed ingredients and keep their proportions the same.
