Did you know that you can have an amazing Chinese classic on a low sodium diet? You can. It takes a few adjustments, but it is really flavorful and at only 256 mg sodium per serving it makes a great sodium-friendly dinner.
I make a few different Asian-inspired dishes, and they will undoubtedly make their way onto the blog. These dishes tend to have complex flavors, bringing fresh veggies and unique spices to the mix. Replace some of the soy sauce with rice vinegar, and you are good to go. The former, as you know, is very salty. The latter is sodium-free, as long as you are using the unseasoned variety (for more info, see the Sneaky Sodium post).
See? Fresh veggies.
You basically just sautee everything together and serve on rice topped with peanuts.
Okay so when you glance at the recipe, you may think that it is going to be complicated or time consuming. It’s not – I promise. This is one of my favorite weeknight meals and usually takes me about 30-40 minutes from start to finish, so don’t let the recipe length scare you. Happy cooking!
PrintKung Pao Chicken
This usually sodium-laden dish is remade with only 265 mg per serving.
SODIUM COUNT: 265 mg per serving; 1725 mg in the whole batch
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Ingredients
The Rice
- 1 cup rice ((uncooked))
- water ((for cooking))
The Chicken
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts ((thinly sliced))
- 2 cloves garlic ((minced))
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp unseasoned rice vinegar
The Sauce
- 1 Tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp sriracha sauce
- 2 Tbsp water
The Veggies
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil ((divided))
- 8 whole dried red chiles (chiles de arbol)*
- 2 large stalks celery ((cut into 1/4″ slices))
- 1 medium zucchini ((quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/4″ slices))
- 1 small red bell pepper ((cut into 1/4″ slices))
- 4 medium green onions ((thinly sliced))
Toppings
- 2 ounces unsalted dry roasted peanuts ((a scant 1/2 cup))
Instructions
The Rice
- Cook the rice according to package directions.
Prep the Chicken
- Place the sliced chicken into a medium bowl with the minced garlic.
- In a small bowl, stir together the rice vinegar, cornstarch, and sugar.
- Stir the cornstarch mixture into to the chicken and garlic. Set aside for 10 minutes (while you slice the veggies)
Put it all together:
- In a small bowl, stir together the sauce ingredients. Set aside.
- In a wok or large skillet, heat 1 ½ teaspoons of oil over medium high heat. Add the dried chiles and cook until the chilies begin to brown and become fragrant.
- Add the chicken to the pan and fry until nearly cooked through, about 8-10 minutes.
- Move the chicken to the side of the pan and add the remaining 1 ½ teaspoons of oil to the pan. Add the celery, zucchini, and red bell pepper to the pan and continue to cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. The vegetables will still be crisp.
- Add the balsamic sauce to the pan and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Stir the green onions into the pan and immediately remove from heat. Remove the dried red chiles before serving.
- Serve on rice topped with the roasted unsalted peanuts.
Notes
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION Yield: 4 servings
Sodium: 265.7 mg, Calories: 431.3, Total Fat: 12.6 g, Saturated Fat: 3.3 g, Cholesterol: 65.8 mg, Carbohydrates: 44.8 g, Fiber: 5.4 g, Sugar: 5.0 g, Protein: 34.9 g.
* I have two notes on the chiles. First, if you can’t find them, you can omit them. They add some richness, but it will taste okay without them. Second, be careful with these – if they come open and the little seeds come out, your Kung Pao Chicken will get very spicy. If this is an issue for you, do your best to pull out the little seeds before you move on to the next step.
Adapted from Clean Eating Magazine, September 2015.
Flavorful and easy recipe! Thank you for sharing it.
★★★★★
Just curious…your total amount of sodium per recipe (1725) divided by 4 servings does not equal 265.7, it equals 431. Maybe I am misreading something?
Good catch. The 1725 is incorrect. I don’t have my original calculations in front of me, but some rough math tells me that the total sodium is closer to 1100. My quick, off the top of my head math is:
Chicken – about 260 mg
Soy sauce – about 600 mg
Sriracha – about 140 mg
Celery – about 100 mg
That comes to 1100 total, or 275 per serving. I know that is still slightly off from the recipe, but these figures are just off the top of my head.