Asian Jalapeno Chicken is easy to make with simple ingredients and less than 30 minutes! A delicious medley of sweet and savory flavors with a kick of spice, it's a full-flavored dish sure to hit the spot!
If you're a long-time reader of the blog, you probably noticed I hadn't posted any new recipes for a while and have been mostly republishing old posts. You see, we'll be launching a new design for the site in the next week or so, and I'm trying to update old content with better photos to match the anticipated bonggalicious look ๐
I hope you've been enjoying these delicious blasts from the past, like this grilled tomato salad or this slow-cooker Lechon, as I have another oldie and goodie from our archive. Asian Jalapeno Chicken Stir Fry!
If you frequent Chinese fast-food restaurants, you've probably seen jalapeno chicken added to the menu in recent years. It's really not your traditional Chinese entree but is more of a delicious fusion of Mexican and Chinese tastes.
This chicken stir-fry is one of the most popular choices in our neighborhood Asian restaurant, and I'm excited for you to give it a try. With lightly battered chicken tossed in a sweet and savory sauce and sliced jalapenos for a healthy kick of spice, it's an interesting combination of delectable flavors that's sure to hit the spot!
Velveting technique
The recipe uses a cooking technique called velveting, where the meat is coated in cornstarch and cooked in hot oil before stir-frying. The method keeps the meat from toughening, creating chicken pieces that are velvety soft, and super moist.
And oh my, the SAUCE! It's sweet, savory, sticky, spicy, and so yummy over heaps of steamed rice!
This restaurant copycat is easy to make at home using simple pantry ingredients you can find at most major supermarkets. It cooks in one pan in 30 minutes or less for the perfect weeknight dinner.
Plus, it makes great leftovers for the next day's packed lunches. Good thing the recipe can be easily doubled (or tripled) from serving a family of four to feeding a hungry crowd.
Cooking tips
- Cut the chicken pieces in uniform size to ensure even cooking.
- If you can't find Chinese cooking wine, substitute dry sherry.
How to serve
Asian Jalapeno Chicken is delicious as a main dish for lunch or dinner. Serve with steamed rice and stir-fried chow mein noodles for the ultimate Chinese take-out fake-out at home!
How to store leftovers
- Allow to cool completely and transfer to a container with a tight-fitting lid. Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months.
- Reheat in the microwave at 2 to 3-minute intervals until warmed through.
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
- ยผ cup cornstarch
- ยผ cup soy sauce
- ยผ cup Chinese cooking wine (Shaoxing wine)
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- ยฝ cup vegetable or peanut oil
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 2 jalapenos, sliced thinly
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine chicken and cornstarch. Mix until chicken is fully coated and marinate for about 5 minutes.
- In a bowl, combine soy sauce, Chinese cooking wine, and brown sugar. Stir until blended and sugar is dissolved. Set aside.
- In a wok or wide skillet, heat oil. Add chicken and fry until crisp and fully cooked. Do not overcrowd skillet, cook in batches as needed.
- With a slotted spoon, remove chicken from pan and drain on paper towels.
- Remove excess oil from the skillet except for about 1 tablespoon. Add garlic and jalapenos and cook, stirring regularly, for about 30to 40 seconds or until aromatic.
- Return chicken to skillet and add soy sauce mixture.
- Continue to cook for about 2 to 3 minutes or until heated through and sauce is thickened. Serve hot.
Notes
- Cut the chicken pieces in uniform size to ensure even cooking.
- If you can't find Chinese cooking wine, substitute dry sherry.
Nutrition Information
โThis website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.โ
Liz says
Fifth time Iโve made this. I added a small amount of blanched broccoli (small pieces) on my last try. This is so easy and we absolutely love it. If you clean the jalapeรฑos veins itโs not that spicy.
Teresa B Salazar says
My family loved this recipe! Do you think I could air fry the chicken?
Lalaine Manalo says
Hello, Teresa,
I haven't tried it but I'm sure you can ๐
Kristal says
Loved it! I took out most of the jalapeรฑo seeds, and it wasnโt spicy at all. I will leave them in next time. Delicious!
Laura says
Delicious
Trudy says
Absolutely love this! Making it for my nieces birthday because I know my family will love it as well!
Kat says
Really good! If you're not someone who loves heat, go easy on the jalapenos. It was a little too spicy for us, but I doubled the recipe and probably shouldn't have doubled the jalapenos. We both liked it, just needed a lot of water.
Nadia says
Wow!! My mouth is on fire right now. Lol I added bell pepper and onions and an extra jalapeรฑo because my husband likes the spice and wow!! Itโs so delicious and my sinuses are cleared up!!! Thank you for sharing this recipe!! Merry Christmas!!
Lalaine Manalo says
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Anne says
This is SO good! Simple recipe thatโs better than take away. I like to add onion and green peppers with the jalapeรฑo. I ordered an air fryer just to try out this recipe. If it works, Iโll be back to let you know. If it doesnโt, I donโt care and Iโm still making this recipe.
Lalaine Manalo says
Thank you so much for the feedback. I'm glad you enjoyed it. And yes, please, let me know how it turns out in the air fryer.
Teresa B Salazar says
Hi, Anne, I saw your comment about the jslapeno chicken and I was wondering if you ever did try air drying the chicken. I, too would like to air fry it and wondered how it worked out for you.
Thanks,
Terry
Lewis says
Too much soy sauce. We put it in the garbage.
Lalaine Manalo says
I'm sorry the recipe didn't work well for you. May I ask if you measured the ingredients properly? 1/4 cup of soy sauce is only 4 tablespoons and definitely not too much for the amount of meat.
Pam says
Oh my gosh... this dish is exactly what I've been looking for! It is so delicious, I look forward to trying your other recipes!!!
Lalaine Manalo says
Thanks for the feedback! I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Sheila says
Excellent recipe, thank you so much! My mother wanted jalapeno chicken like she gets at her favorite Chinese restaurant so I began looking for a recipe. I'm so glad I found yours! The only thing I did differently was use chicken thighs instead of breast (our preference), and add some whole button mushrooms. It was delicious!
Lalaine Manalo says
Thanks for the feedback! I'll try adding mushrooms next time; sounds delicious.
Jarod O says
This recipe is delicious! We didnโt have Chinese cooking wine on hand, so we used rice vinegar instead and it worked great! We only used one jalapeรฑo because weโre weak when it comes to heat๐. Even the kids loved it! Thanks for the awesome recipe.
Lalaine Manalo says
Glad you were able to make it work with rice vinegar. ๐
Melissa says
I finally made the Jalepeno chicken tonight and it was de-li-cious! I will definitely double the recipe next time! Thank you!
Lalaine Manalo says
Thanks for the 5-stars!
Suzanne says
Absolutely delicious. Made it last week. Now again tonight. Doubled the recipe.
Added bell pepper and onion.
Just hate the grease mess clean up.
Lalaine Manalo says
Hi Suzanne! Double the yum! ๐
Dorothy says
This is the best I have found,,I use your recipe a lot. Love it
Lalaine Manalo says
Thank you so much!
Amelinda Whitley says
Omg!!! I added cabbage and carrots and we are in love with this dish!
Lalaine Manalo says
The cabbage and carrots sound like a great addition. Thanks for the tip!