Soft, tender and juicy chicken chunks are teamed up with veggies and tossed in a wicked delicious sauce in this Chinese black pepper chicken recipe. It barely takes 20 minutes to put the dish together from scratch, and it tastes just as great as your favorite Chinese takeout version does.
If you've been craving some Asian food, this easy recipe is absolutely worth trying out!
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This aromatic stir-fry packs a punch with its robust black pepper sauce, tender chicken, and a perfect balance of spices. Whether you're looking to spice up your weeknight dinner or impress guests with a homemade asian or chinese meal like Yakisoba or Korean noodles, this dish is sure to satisfy your cravings for something both spicy and savory.
My chicken stir fry with vegetables is one of my absolute favorites, but I really wanted to amp it up with some different Asian flavors. And that's when I tried this black pepper chicken recipe. If you're a fan of black pepper flavors, you'll also enjoy my coconut beef curry
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What I Love About this Recipe
This Chinese black pepper chicken is one of the easiest and quickest recipes out there. It comes together in just 20 minutes.
You can customize the sauces and flavors to your liking too! It's pretty versatile that way.
There's a ton of ways you can enjoy it! It tastes fantastic on its own, and turns it into a filling and wholesome meal when paired with some rice or noodles.
Recipe Ingredients
Chicken: I used skinless chicken breasts, cut into flat cubes. You can use boneless chicken thighs too.
Marinade: To marinate the chicken, all you'll need is salt, pepper, and soy sauce.
Sauce: For the sauce, you'll need some dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, Chinese cooking wine, some broth (or water) and a bit of cornstarch.
Stir fry: For the stir fry, you'll need some fresh garlic, onion, red and green bell peppers, some ginger, salt and black pepper to season, and some cooking oil.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Variations & Substitutions
- While you can use any cooking oil for the recipe, I recommend sesame oil for that authentic Asian flavor.
- If you don't have oyster sauce, use Hoisin sauce or any of your favorite Asian sauce of your choice.
- To lend a kick of heat to this Chinese black pepper chicken, add a dash of Sriracha or any hot sauce of your choice. If you don't have either of these, add a dash of red pepper flakes or cayenne to the seasonings.
- To make a gluten-free version of this recipe, swap the soy sauce with coconut aminos.
How to Make Chinese Black Pepper Chicken
Step 1: Marinate the chicken with salt, pepper, and soy sauce.
Step 2: Combine the ingredients for the sauce in a bowl and set it aside.
Step 3: Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook the chicken until lightly golden brown on all sides. Remove the chicken and set it aside on a plate.
Step 4: Now, add a bit more oil to the same skillet and saute the ginger and garlic for a few minutes until fragrant.
Step 5: Add the onions and peppers and saute for another minute.
Step 6: Mix the sauce quickly and add it to the pan. Continue cooking until the sauce thickens and coats the chicken and veggies nicely. Take off the heat and serve!
Storing Leftovers
You can store your leftover Chinese black pepper chicken for 2-3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat it, pop it in the microwave with a splash of water or chicken broth and pause at every 20-second interval until it is nice and warm.
You can also reheat it in a pan if you want to —just make sure you keep the heat low, or the chicken and veggies will burn.
Tips & Tricks to Make the Chinese Black Pepper Chicken
- Cook the veggies and chicken on medium heat. Avoid overcrowding the skillet, especially when you're cooking the chicken—you really want that bit of crispiness on the outside.
- Make sure you stir the sauce ingredients nicely before you pour it over the veggies and chicken. Cornstarch usually sits at the bottom, and you might miss it.
- Put the chicken in a hot pan and spread it so there is little or no overlapping. Do not touch the chicken until after 40 seconds, as it will shred or tear apart. After about 40 seconds, start stirring so it cooks evenly. When fully cooked, remove and set aside.
- Sauté garlic and onion till it's fragrant.
- Add ingredients to the pan and stir quickly on medium heat so they don't overcook. You want to end up with crunchy veggies.
- Add the cooked chicken and sauce, and keep stirring until it thickens.
- Make sure you stir the sauce ingredients nicely before you pour it over the veggies and chicken. Cornstarch usually sits at the bottom, and you might miss it.
- If you don't have cornstarch, use arrowroot powder. This is essentially a thickener that helps you get that nice bit of glaze on the chicken and veggies.
- Consider adding other veggies like broccoli, mushrooms, bok choy, baby corn, zucchini, green beans, and carrots to the mix. Remember that some veggies need longer to cook, so you'll need to add them in first.
Serving Ideas & Suggestions
This Chinese black pepper chicken goes well with many things! You can pair it with some steamed rice if you want to keep it simple, or with some Yakisoba noodles, shrimp fried rice, or even regular fried rice.
And if you have a bit of extra time, you can also make some Air Fryer spring rolls to go with it.
Consider adding other veggies like broccoli, mushrooms, bok choy, baby corn, zucchini, green beans, and carrots to the mix. Remember that some veggies need longer to cook, so you'll need to add them in first.
Recipe FAQs
Add a small amount of baking soda to the marinade to make the chicken more tender and soft.
Yes! While traditional Chinese Black Pepper Chicken uses chicken, you can easily substitute it with other proteins like beef, pork, shrimp, or tofu. Each protein will absorb the flavorful black pepper sauce, creating a delicious dish variation.
Definitely! While bell peppers and onions are the most common vegetables in Chinese Black Pepper Chicken, you can get creative and add other veggies like mushrooms, snap peas, and broccoli.
More Chicken Recipes to Try
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
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Chinese Black Pepper Chicken
Ingredients
Chicken Marinade
- 2 Chicken breast cut into flat chunks
- 1 tablespoon Soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon Black pepper
- Pinch of Salt
Sauce
- ½ cup Broth or water
- 2 tbsp Dark soy sauce or light soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon Corn starch
- 2 tablespoon Oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon Chinese cooking wine or dry sherry
Stir-Fry
- 3 Garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon Freshly cracked black pepper
- ½ large Onion
- 1 Red bell pepper any color
- 1 Green bell pepper any color
- 1 tablespoon Sesame oil any cooking oil
- 2 tablespoon Cooking oil
- 1 tablespoon Ginger minced
- ⅛ teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Combine chicken, soy sauce, salt, and black pepper in a bowl. Mix by hand generously till well combined. Let it marinate for 10 minutes.2 Chicken breast, 1 tablespoon Soy sauce, Pinch of Salt, 1 teaspoon Black pepper
- In a small bowl, combine the ingredients for the sauce and mix well using a spoon.½ cup Broth, 2 tablespoon Dark soy sauce, 2 tablespoon Corn starch, 2 tablespoon Oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon Chinese cooking wine
- Add 2 tablespoon of cooking oil to a hot skillet on medium heat. Put the chicken, spread and fry until fully cooked and tender for 3 minutes. Make sure you flip the sides halfway through till the chicken edges become golden brown.2 tablespoon Cooking oil
- Using a spoon, remove the chicken and set aside leaving behind the oil in the skillet or wok.
- Add the sesame oil, and sauté the garlic and ginger for about 30 second till they are fragrant.1 tablespoon Sesame oil, 1 tablespoon Ginger, 3 Garlic cloves
- Add the onions, salt black pepper, and peppers. Stir fry for 30 seconds1 teaspoon Freshly cracked black pepper, ½ large Onion, 1 Red bell pepper, 1 Green bell pepper, ⅛ teaspoon Salt
- While the peppers are cooking, stir the sauce again with a spoon and add to the pot. Stir to combine until it thickens. Now add chicken and stir for a few seconds. Turn off the heat and remove the skillet.
- Transfer into plate and serve immediately.
Video
Notes
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- Cook the veggies and chicken on medium heat. Avoid overcrowding the skillet, especially when you're cooking the chicken- you really want to have that bit of crispiness on the outside.
-
- Make sure you stir the sauce ingredients nicely before you pour it into veggies and chicken. Cornstarch usually sits at the bottom, and you might end up missing it.
-
- If you don't have cornstarch, use arrowroot powder. This is essentially a thickener that helps you get that nice bit of glaze on the chicken and veggies.
-
- Consider adding other veggies like broccoli, mushrooms, bok choy, baby corn, zucchini, green beans and carrots into the mix. Remember that some veggies need longer to cook- so you'll need to add them in first.
Bilikis
Yummy yummy