Black Pepper Chicken
This Chinese black pepper chicken has such great balance! The chicken is tender and the vegetables are crisp tender, all tossed in a delicious black pepper stir fry sauce.
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 425kcal
Equipment
- Large wok 12-inch or larger
Ingredients
For the chicken and marinade
- 1 pound boneless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Chinese shaoxing cooking wine or dry sherry
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch do not substitute
- ½ teaspoon baking soda do not substitute
For the stir fry sauce
- ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth
- ½ tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce plus more to taste
- ½ teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon Chinese shaoxing cooking wine or dry sherry
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar plus more to taste
- 1 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
For the stir fry
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- ½ a medium yellow onion, sliced
- 2 stalks celery, diagonally sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into squares seeds removed
- Vegetable oil for cooking
Instructions
- Marinate chicken (aka "velveting"): Cut the chicken thighs against the grain into 1-inch thick pieces. In a bowl, combine the sliced chicken with the all the marinade ingredients. Cover and marinate for 20 minutes at room temperature.
- Prep: Meanwhile, prep all the vegetables and stir fry ingredients. Having everything ready is important because once you start cooking, everything happens quickly over high heat.
- Make the stir fry sauce: In a bowl, dissolve the chicken broth with cornstarch. Then, add the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, shaoxing wine, and granulated sugar and mix until evenly combined. Tip: Cornstarch dissolves best with room temperature liquids, so make sure the broth is at room temp.
- Cook chicken: Heat a large wok or skillet over HIGH heat and add a few generous drizzles of vegetable oil. Once hot, add the chicken and cook until fully cooked and golden brown, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside. Tip: To get a golden crust, cook undisturbed on one side first until golden (about 3 minutes) before stir-frying it to cook the chicken fully.
- Add vegetables and aromatics: In the same pan, add a few more drizzles of oil as needed, and then sauté onions, celery, and red bell peppers for about 2 minutes until crisp tender. Push them to the side of the pan, add a bit more oil then sauté garlic and ginger until fragrant, another 30-45 seconds.
- Combine and add sauce: Return the chicken to the wok. Give the sauce a quick stir again and then gradually add it into the stir fry (adjust the amount to taste). Cook for 1-2 more minutes until the sauce is thickened, stirring.
- If you’d like, add another pinch of sugar to balance out the savory flavor profile, but I didn’t find this necessary. Serve immediately with rice or your favorite sides. Enjoy!
Notes
- Tania's kitchen note (May 2026): I re-tested this recipe and made a slight update. This updated version calls for 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce (it was 2 tablespoons before). I think this change makes a more balanced black pepper sauce that's not as salty.
- Marinating time for the chicken: 20 minutes or even overnight.
- For busy weeknights: Prep all the ingredients the day before, including the chicken. Cooking takes 10 minutes or so.
- Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave oven or in a skillet.
- Freezing: Freeze in portions for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat in the microwave oven or skillet.
- How to make jasmine rice for serving: In a pot, combine jasmine rice with water. For every 1 cup of uncooked rice, I use 1 ⅓ cups of water. Bring to a low boil, covered, and cook for 18-20 minutes over low heat until tender. You can also use an electric rice cooker.
- Shaoxing wine: Dry sherry.
- Chicken thighs: Chicken breast, but marinate for an extra 15 minutes or overnight.
- Optional vegetable add-is: Mushrooms, zucchini, green beans, carrots, etc.
- For heat, finish with a little bit of chili oil.
Nutrition
Calories: 425kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 33g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 12g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 111mg | Sodium: 920mg | Potassium: 442mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 1113IU | Vitamin C: 41mg | Calcium: 35mg | Iron: 1mg