This dump-and-bake Kung Pao chicken recipe requires just 10 minutes of prep! Skip the Chinese takeout and prepare a healthier version at home.
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If you love homemade Chinese-inspired recipes, be sure to try this dump-and-bake healthy General Tso chicken, mu shu pork, pepper steak with onion, and chicken and broccoli lo mein, too!
I usually do not comment, however, this is fabulous. Easy and very little clean up. I toasted my peanuts and sesame seeds. It was fabulous.
– Becky
That’s right — you can make a baked version of Kung Pao chicken with minimal effort! Your family will be impressed, and nobody will need to know how simple it really was.
This Homemade Kung Pao Chicken Recipe is Perfect for Busy Nights
Kung Pao chicken is a stir-fry that typically includes diced chicken breasts in a sweet and spicy sauce. The Kung Pao sauce is often made with light soy sauce, chicken broth, garlic, ginger, sugar, sesame oil, and cornstarch. It has a nicely balanced sweet-and-sour taste, with a definite spicy PUNCH from the Asian chili peppers. Some versions of Kung Pao chicken also include orange juice or orange zest, which adds fresh flavor in the background.
This homemade version of the Chinese dish is perfect for busy weeknight dinners because it doesn’t require any standing, stirring, and babysitting a skillet on the stovetop. Instead, you’ll stir everything together and pop it in the oven!
Kung Pao Chicken vs. General Tso Chicken
While Kung Pao chicken and General Tso chicken are similar in many ways, there are a few main differences:
- General Tso chicken is typically dark meat that has been deep-fried and coated in a sweet and spicy sauce. By contrast, Kung Pao Chicken uses leaner white meat, which is stir-fried.
- While General Tso chicken may have some spice to it, it’s not nearly as spicy as Kung Pao chicken (which often includes spicy dried Asian chili peppers).
- Kung Pao chicken includes a lot of peanuts in the dish, while General Tso’s may (or may not) include any peanuts at all.
There are more subtle differences in the sauces and flavors of the two meals as well.
Ingredient Notes and Tips for Success
- Orange zest, the top layer of an orange’s peel, adds bright citrus flavor to the Kung Pao chicken sauce. When zesting an orange, only peel off that top layer — and not the white pith underneath (which has a bitter taste). The orange zest includes the fruit’s essential oils, which give a recipe a powerful hit of orange flavor (far more flavor than you would get with an equal amount of orange juice — and the zest won’t water-down your sauce).
- I like to use my microplane to quickly zest an orange in about 30 seconds. It’s such a great kitchen tool (I also use it to grate hard cheeses like Parmesan, as well as onions, garlic, and ginger).
- This recipe calls for boneless, skinless chicken breasts; however, you can sub with boneless, skinless chicken thighs if you prefer the dark meat.
- One major benefit of making your own Kung Pao chicken recipe at home is that you can control the heat. Restaurant versions are often very spicy! If you want the dish spicy, add extra red pepper flakes. If you want a mild version, omit the red pepper altogether.
How to Make Kung Pao Chicken
You’ll find detailed directions in the recipe card below, but here’s the quick overview:
- Toss the diced chicken with cornstarch. The cornstarch thickens the sauce and helps the sauce cling to the chicken.
- Whisk together the Kung Pao sauce. Pour it over the chicken.
- Bake, uncovered, for about 25-30 minutes, stirring once towards the end.
- Taste and season with additional salt, pepper, or red pepper flakes. This is also a good time to garnish the chicken with peanuts, sliced scallions, or toasted sesame seeds.
Serving Suggestions
Serve the healthy Kung Pao chicken recipe over rice (or over cauliflower rice for an even lighter dish) with plenty of extra sauce spooned over top. We love it with steamed broccoli tossed into the mix as well. Additional good options include pasta, ramen noodles, sesame peanut noodles, ramen noodle coleslaw, sesame ginger snap pea salad, or baked store-bought egg rolls. Don’t forget fortune cookies for dessert, too!
Preparation and Storage Tips
- How to Store: leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- How to Freeze: store leftovers in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- How to Reheat: Reheat the chicken and sauce in a skillet on the stovetop over low heat, just until warmed through. You can also microwave individual servings for about 1 minute.
WOW – this was fabulous! Planning on making it for our annual Halloween Party! Thank you so much!!!
– Janice
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Kung Pao Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- ½ cup chicken broth
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup hoisin sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic (about 3 cloves)
- 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger (or ¼ teaspoon ground ginger)
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (add more for a spicier dish or omit for a mild dish)
- ½ cup dry-roasted peanuts, or more to taste
- Optional garnish: sliced green onions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Spray a medium baking dish with nonstick cooking spray (I have used a deep 9-inch by 6-inch dish and an 11-inch by 7-inch dish, and both work well). Place the chicken in the prepared dish. Sprinkle with cornstarch and toss to coat.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the orange zest, chicken broth, brown sugar, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, salt, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Pour the sauce over the chicken and stir to combine.
- Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Stir, return to the oven for 5-10 more minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened.
- Remove from oven, stir in the peanuts. Season with additional salt and red pepper flakes, to taste. Garnish with sliced green onions just before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
More Chinese Recipes to Try
Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken
40 minutes mins
Egg Roll in a Bowl
20 minutes mins
Dump-and-Bake Sesame Chicken Noodles
55 minutes mins
Originally published in June 2018, this post was updated in February 2025.
Yum! This looks so good – and so much better than takeout!!
Thanks, Kristy! YES!!! 🙂
This looks so good. Will make this soon.
Thanks. Hope you enjoy the meal, Terri!
I love the egg roll in a bowl. It’s quick and very easy! Great flavor! I can’t waut to try dump and bake Kung pao chicken
That’s awesome, Mary! I hope you enjoy this meal, too!
I usually do not comment, however, this is fabulous. Easy and very little clean up. I toasted my peanuts and sesame seeds. It was fabulous.
Wonderful! Thank you, Becky!
I added broccoli and veggie pot stickers and omitted the peanuts. It was amazing! Great sauce recipe for any protein/veg mix!
Thanks, Julie! I’m so glad that you enjoyed it! 🙂
I love these dump and bake recipes…this was my first time with this one and it came out great. I did however not have oranges so I used tangerine zest and then used the juice to replace some of the stock. I also didn’t have stock so I used stock base and water and omitted the salt. I think I basically turned this into orange chicken! Served with steamed broccoli and jasmine rice. So good!
Sounds like a great way to switch it up, Rebecca! Thanks for your note, and so glad that you like the recipes! 🙂
I’ve just discovered you and have subscribed via email. I’m excited to try your recipes. I love that the recipes I’ve seen so far use whole foods for the most part. I like knowing what is going into my meals.
Thank you, Ellie! I’m so glad that you found my site. I hope that you enjoy the recipes!
WOW – this was fabulous! Planning on making it for our annual Halloween Party! Thank you so much!!!
Awesome! Thank you, Janice!
This was fantastic. I decreased the sugar by half and it was still plenty flavorful! I’m at high altitude so only needed to bake for 15 min and chicken was tender and juicy!
Thanks, Pat! I’m so glad that you enjoyed it!
Hello Blair! This looks great but I need to reconfigure the recipe a little to cut down on the carbohydrates. I do not adhere or am using the current trend of the Keto diet system but am an insulin dependent diabetic for almost 62 years and every injection I get is dependent on the amount of carbs. This recipe is high even tough the primary ingredient is a protein. I know that 2 primary triggers are the brown sugar which I can readily exchange for a non-sugar based alternative and probably the cornstarch, which albeit not totally correct but to a low carb. flour product. With those exchanges I can get rid of a good handful of diabetic non-friendly ingredients but i know nothing about sugar sources in Hoisin sauce as there must be a few hidden carb. devils hiding somewhere, maybe? My husband and I LOVE Chinese food but I usually have to go for a plain stir fry, with soy sauce (I have no problem with sodium and am actually low), or ask for the meal without ANY sauces and there goes the flavor. I have been able to exchange ingredients in almost all of our old family recipes, even to my husband’s liking. This, does, look too good to pass on! Thanks for your help…Martha PS I am a 68 year old, who is NOT set in her ways!
Hi, Martha! I’d love to help you figure it out, but I’m definitely no expert when it comes to this. There is definitely going to be sugar in the hoisin sauce, since it’s a thick, sweet sauce that’s similar to an Asian-style bbq sauce. I’m not aware of any sugar-free hoisin sauces on the market (although they might exist), but it looks like you can make your own sugar-free substitute with a recipe like this one: https://lowcarbyum.com/keto-hoisin-sauce-recipe/ Maybe that helps?
Let me know if you have any luck. I guarantee that you’re not the only one with this question! 🙂
While you say that this is spicier than the General Tso’s, it does have the same ingredients in the sauce with the exception of the orange zest. IT is only spicier if you use more red pepper flakes.
I would add sugar snap peas or broccoli to it during the second baking to add more flavor and balance.
Thank you for the feedback, Eddie! We hope you enjoyed the recipe.
Absolutely delicious. My husband and I loved it.
Hi, Blair! Can I add vegetables to this dish, either during the cooking or after?
Hi, Laura! Yes, I would steam the veggies or saute them separately and then stir them in at the end. That way you can make sure that your veggies are cooked perfectly. If you’re planning to use a lot of vegetables, you might want to make some extra sauce (just increase the sauce by half or double it).
Thank you, Blair! 🙂