Copycat Pepper Chicken Recipe
This copycat Pepper Chicken recreates the Panda Express favorite at home in about 30 minutes. Juicy chicken thigh meat, crisp celery and onion, and a bold black pepper sauce come together in one pan, and it tastes so much better than takeout.
Servings: 4
Calories: 634kcal
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thigh meat
- 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
- salt
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 cups chopped celery
Sauce:
- 3/4 cup chicken stock
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce use gluten free soy or tamari if needed
- 3 tbsp white vinegar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tbsp fresh cracked black pepper
Rice:
- 1 1/2 cups uncooked Jasmine rice yields about 4 1/2 cups cooked
Instructions
- Cook rice according to the package instructions and set aside.
- Preheat a cooking pan over medium-high heat and add a couple of tablespoons of oil for cooking.
- Chop chicken thigh meat into small pieces and place them in a small mixing bowl. (You can first remove excess fat from the meat if you prefer.)
- Add 1/2 tbsp of cornstarch, 2 tsp. black pepper, and some salt. Mix very well so that the chicken is coated in corn starch, salt, and pepper evenly. Set aside.
- Dice onion and celery and saute for a few minutes.
- Once veggies are softened, add chicken and mix well. Saute chicken until about half way cooked.
- While chicken is cooking, whisk ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl.
- Add sauce into the pan with the chicken, stir well. Bring the sauce to simmer and lower the heat to medium-low.
- Stir and cook chicken and veggies until chicken is completely cooked. Take off heat.
- I prefer to serve this Pepper Chicken over Jasmine rice.
Jasmine rice can be swapped out for brown rice, quinoa, or steamed veggies.
Video
Notes
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
- Reheat in a skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until warmed through. Add a small splash of chicken stock or water if the sauce has thickened too much in the fridge. You can reheat in a microwave at 30-40 second intervals, stirring in between.
- Freeze in a freezer-safe container for up to 1 month (without rice). Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
Nutrition
Calories: 634kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 52g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 215mg | Sodium: 1071mg | Potassium: 899mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 281IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 3mg