Kung Pao Chicken

What is it?

Diced chicken gets wok-tossed with roasted peanuts, dried whole red chilis, zucchini, and red bell peppers in a soy-based sauce with vinegar and chili. The chicken is cut small, so it picks up sauce quickly, while the peanuts stay dry and crunchy. Dried chilis show up more as aroma and color than something you’d eat whole. Compared with sweeter Panda Express entrees, this one leans savory and spicy. It’s one of the chain’s classic chicken plates, and the mix of soft vegetables, tender meat, and nuts gives it more texture than a lot of fast food stir-fries.