Ingredients

Marinade

1 tsp sea salt

2 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp Shaoxing wine

3 tbsp cornflour

Chicken

4 free-range chicken breasts

1 bunch spring onions, white part

Vegetable oil

6 dried Kashmiri chillies, halved and seeds removed

2 tsp Sichuan peppercorns

5 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced

1 thumb of ginger (same amount as garlic), chopped

150 g roasted cashew nuts

Sauce

4 tbsp caster sugar

1 ½ tsp cornflour

1 ½ tsp dark soy sauce

2 tsp light soy sauce

4 tbsp Chinkiang vinegar

½ chicken stock cube or ½ tsp MSG (Yes! MSG. It’s has a bad press and is not bad for you)

2 tsp sesame oil

Method

1. Mix the marinade ingredients together in a medium bowl. Cut the chicken breast into equal sized cubes (1.5 cm) and stir into the marinade.

2. Cut the spring onions into 1.5 cm lengths.

3. Mix the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl.

4. Place the wok on high heat and add a splash of vegetable oil. Add the chillies and Sichuan peppercorns and fry for a few seconds, then add half of the chicken in a single layer. Brown the chicken, stirring occasionally (don’t move around too often). When caramelised, remove to a bowl and cook the rest of the chicken. Add the first chicken to the wok along with the garlic, ginger and spring onions and stir to combine.

5. Check the chicken is cooked, then pour in the sauce and mix to combine. Add the cashews when the sauce has thickened, stir to coat, and serve straight away with fried or steamed rice.

   Serves 4

   Click link below image for the Yangzhou fried rice recipe