This mala chicken recipe is one of my all-time favorites. And you can make it as spicy as you want! It's also called dry chili chicken. . . and it's better than I've had at any restaurant so far.
If you want to make it yourself, here's how to make gluten-free mala chicken.
This is such a filling meal for a family, and it pairs well with all sorts of things. Try this instant pot broccoli. It's also absolutely perfect with a semi-sweet appetizer. Try these gluten-free crab rangoons!
How to Make Mala Chicken
It's easy to make dry chili chicken. I like to make it pretty spicy, but I'll hold off on the dry chili peppers in this guide.
First, cut the chicken into cubes. These should be about a half inch on each side.
Next, add the spices. These are what give the mala chicken its mouth-watering aroma.
Next, you'll make the mala sauce. It's a mix of oil, pepper, and spices.
Next, sautee the chicken. The goal here is to cook it all the way through and to brown the sides.
Once the chicken is cooked to a crispy perfection, turn your focus back to the dry chili sauce.
This is the same sauce from earlier. Add it to the skillet or frying pan, and add the garlic.
Add your onions. This is also the step where you add the dry chili peppers.
Cook the onions until they're translucent. The dry chili peppers will start to add some heat to the oil.
Finally, it's time to add the chicken back to the pan. Over that same medium-high heat, toss the chicken in the mala sauce.
Mala chicken is usually served with rice. And, despite its reputation as "dry chili chicken", this recipe is anything but dry.
Done right, mala chicken has a coating of delicious, spicy oil. Cover the rice with the chicken and enjoy!
Why You'll Love This Dry Chili Chicken
There's a version of this dish at my favorite Chinese restaurant, and the key to the wonderful heat is the Szechuan peppers. To make it spicier, add more peppers. That's the source of the capsicum. To reduce the spicey heat, remove the peppers. This recipe was designed with a robust flavor in mind, with or without the extra heat.
It's also pretty easy to make. Just sautee the chicken and prepare the oil sauce.
Serve the dry chili chicken with gluten-free fried rice, white rice, or steamed veggies.
Ingredients for This Recipe
There are three parts to this dry chili chicken recipe. Here are the ingredients you'll need for each part.
Marinade:
- 1 lb boneless & skinless chicken breast, cubed
- 1 tbsp Nakano rice vinegar
- 1 ½ tbsp gluten-free soy sauce (or Tamari)
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ tsp ground Sichuan peppercorns
- ½ tsp cayenne powder
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Mixing Sauce:
- 1 tbsp Nakano rice vinegar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp chili sauce
Cook:
- 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 2 green onion, sliced
- Oil for frying
For serving, you'll want cooked rice if you want the mala rice to look like my photos. I also recommend toasted sesame seeds (but they're more of a garnish). Both of these are optional.
Equipment Needed
This mala chicken recipe only calls for a few things. Here's what you'll need.
- Wok, sautee pan, or large frying pan
- Wooden spoon or spatula
Optionally, you may want to use a rice cooker. These are major time savors.
Serving Suggestions and Common Questions
Sometimes readers have questions about my gluten-free recipes. I'll do my best to answer your questions here.
How Do You Prepare the Spices?
If you don't have Sichuan peppercorns, also called Szechuan peppercorns, you can and should use full dried Szechuan peppers. They're absolutely vital to the flavor of the recipe. The rest of the spices are pretty common in the United States. Choose a gluten-free chili sauce, sesame oil, and soy sauce. And yes, you will need to choose a soy sauce that's gluten free.
What's in The Marinade?
The marinade is oil, rice wine, soy sauce, and dried chili peppers.
Can You Use More/Less Dried Peppers?
You should absolutely change this recipe to suit your taste. The easiest way to do this is with more or less Szechuan (Sichuan) peppers.
Extra Oil Is Good
It might have dry in the name, but dry chili chicken is best when you have a little extra oil. Use this for extra flavor on your cooked rice, or save some as a dip for egg rolls.
Substitutions
Did you make this recipe? Please let me know in the comments! I try to respond to everyone within a day or two. I'm also happy to answer any questions you have about this mouth-watering dry chili chicken.
A Note on Garlic
I'm a fan of home-grown garlic. Last season my garden produced about 50 bulbs. That's enough to get me through the winter and to give a bunch to my friends and neighbors. I started planting it a few seasons ago, and now it's a favorite. To grow your own garlic, just pull the bulb apart and plant each clove individually. I usually do that in the fall, but you can also plant early in the spring depending on your area. Here are some garlic starters if you don't want to wait for your next farmer's market.
Mala Chicken (Dry Chili Chicken)
This mala chicken (also called dry chili chicken) is crispy and as spicy as you like. Enjoy the aromatic spices and dry chili peppers.
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 lb boneless & skinless chicken breast, cubed
- 1 tbsp Nakano rice vinegar or dry sherry
- 1 ½ tbsp gluten-free soy sauce
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ tsp ground Sichuan peppercorns
- ½ tsp cayenne powder
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Sauce
- 1 tbsp Nakano rice vinegar or dry sherry
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp chili sauce
Pan
- 1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 2 green onion, sliced
- Oil for frying
Serving
- Cooked rice
- Toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Place chicken in a large bowl, Add rice vinegar and soy sauce (or Tamari), mix them.
- Add salt, ground Sichuan peppercorns, cayenne powder, and cornstarch. Mix well. Marinate at least for 30 minutes.
- In a small mixing bowl, mix rice vinegar , soy sauce, sesame oil and chili sauce. Set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat oil over medium to low heat. Fry marinated chicken until brown. Take out the chicken from the oil.
- Pour out some oil and saute Sichuan peppercorns, dried chili peppers, and garlic until fragrant.
- Add in ginger paste and onion until transparent, pour in sauce mixture and fried chicken for 2-3 minutes then add sliced green onion, mix for another 1 minute.
- Served with cooked rice and sesame seeds.
Notes
Add as much spice as you prefer with more or less dry chili peppers. The cooking oil also makes a wonderful sauce for rice.
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DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?
Tag @glutenfreepalate on Instagram and hashtag it #glutenfreepalatebaker so we can see all the deliciousness!
Judy Thorne
I have not made this recipe but thought it should be noted that Shaoxing rice wine
is NOT GLUTEN FREE. It is quite a small amount and a dry sherry can be substituted.
See: https://gluten.guide/post/shaoxing-wine/#:~:text=It's%20made%20from%20glutinous%20rice,glutinous%20rice%20when%20making%20huangjiu.
Jim Markus
Thanks Judy! We've updated our recipe with Nakano rice vinegar instead of rice wine, just in case. It's made with rice vinegar and water, not with a mix of grains.
Jack
This recipe really needs some work.
1. The recipe should be broken up into ingredients for marinate, and ingredients
for the pan
2. It lists ground peppercorns that go in the marinade. Later is says saute the peppercorns.
Sounds like there should be some whole peppercorns lists?
3. The instructions say "mix in ginger paste and onions." Neither of those ingredients are listed.
Jim
You're completely right. The ingredient section was missing its segments. I've made that update so all the ingredients appear in each section. Thank you for the comment!