Black Pepper Chicken
This Black Pepper Chicken is even better than your favorite Chinese Takeout! You can quickly put this together on any night of the week and serve over rice or noodles for a tasty dinner.
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No need to spend an arm and a leg ordering takeout this week! Next time a craving for Chinese food hits, you can easily make your own black pepper chicken. Quick and easy to put together, this recipe features chicken breast and tender veggies in a black pepper sauce.
Why This Recipe Works
Stir fry recipes are super easy to throw together and very versatile. This is great to serve on its own or pair with another dish like steamed white rice or some noodles!
And if you love making your own Chinese inspired dishes at home, try this Slow Cooker Teriyaki Beef and Broccoli, a batch of Slow Cooker Chinese Spare Ribs, or this Spicy Hunan Chicken Stir Fry.
Ingredients Needed
- Chicken: Using either chicken breasts or boneless chicken thighs works well here.
- Cornstarch: This ensures the pepper sauce gets nice and thick.
- Oyster Sauce: For some umami flavor.
- Black Pepper: Gives this dish its signature pepper flavor.
- Chicken Broth: Chicken stock is a great option, but you could also use vegetable broth instead.
- Soy Sauce: Using both low sodium soy sauce and dark soy sauce ensures lot of flavor and a nice dark color.
- Brown Sugar: Balances out all the savory flavors with some rich sweetness.
- Shaoxing Wine: This is the secret ingredient that will make your dish taste just like takeout.
- Oil: I use a combination of olive oil and sesame oil.
- Veggies: White onion, celery, garlic, and red bell pepper are all fantastic options to add to these stir fry.
How to Make This Black Pepper Chicken
- Step 1: In a mixing bowl, combine diced chicken with water, cornstarch, oyster sauce, and pepper. Set aside to marinate.
- Step 2: In a separate bowl, make the sauce by whisking together chicken broth, oyster sauce, soy sauce and dark soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, and Xiaosing wine.
- Step 3: Heat a wok or cast iron skillet with olive oil over high heat. Add the chicken and cook for a few minutes on each side, then remove.
- Step 4: Add all of the veggies and cook for 20 to 30 seconds or until softened, then add the garlic and cook another 30 seconds or so.
- Step 3: Pour the sauce mixture over the veggies and bring to a simmer until sauce has thickened.
- Step 4: Add the chicken back into the veggies and stir until everything is coated in the sauce and heated through.
Recipe Tips
- This pepper chicken pairs well with white rice, brown rice, or egg noodles.
- Top the finished chicken with some green onions or sesame seeds.
- Feel free to add more veggies if you like! Broccoli, spinach, mushrooms, and watercress all work well.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. You can microwave to reheat, or add a bit of oil to a skillet over medium heat and cook the leftovers until heated through.
Recipe FAQ's
This rice wine is commonly used in Chinese cooking with a bit of a butty flavor and some subtle sweetness.
Sherry, mirin, sake, or rice wine vinegar are also good options to use instead of Shaoxing wine if you can't find it.
More Chicken Recipes
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Black Pepper Chicken
Ingredients
For The Chicken
- 1 pound chicken breasts or thigh cut into bite sized pieces
- 3 tablespoons water
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon coarse black pepper
For The Sauce
- 1/2 cup chicken broth low sodium
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or sherry
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 3 tablespoon olive oil divided
- 1 medium onion cut into wedges
- 1/2 bell pepper cut into 1 inch pieces
- 2 celery stalks thinly sliced
- 3 tablespoons garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon coarse black pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
Instructions
- In a medium bowl add the diced chicken, water, cornstarch,oyster sauce and pepper and toss until coated and set aside.
- In another small bowl add the chicken stock,oyster sauce,soy sauce,brown sugar,dark soy sauce,sesame oil, and Shaoxing wind and whisk until combined.
- Heat a cast iron skillet or wok over high heat and add the olive oil, then add in the chicken sear the chicken for just a couple of minutes on each side. remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
- Add in the remaining olive oil and add the onions, peppers, and celery and cook 20-30 seconds just until soft, add in the garlic and cook another 20 seconds.
- Pour in the sauce mixture and let it come to a quick simmer to thicken. Add the cooked chicken and any extra juices and stir.
- Serve over rice!
