Let me introduce to you one of my favourite recipes -- Szechwan chicken -- a sharp flavoured dish. It is chicken stir-fried and covered in a dark soy-based sauce with ginger and hot peppers. The meal is very beautiful when served, and even more impressive to watch while being made. Here is a bonus hint for you: use this to its fullest advantage by making the meal on dates or other events in which being impressive could be considered advantageous.

It is best to serve Szechwan Chicken with rice, or another mild dish to offset the spicy heat of the stir-fry. Vegetables are also a nice touch, and along with rice will serve to round out the meal to match anything you would find at an expensive restaurant. The sauce from the stir-fry can also be used to fry a number of vegetables to accompany the meal. Recycling the sauce you used with the chicken is a quick and easy way to get the most out of your preparation time!

This dish is best served with a sweet beverage, like white win, cola or other soda, or mixed drinks. The heat from the peppers mixes well with any Mexican beverage.

Overall this is a very special dish, which does require some extra time to cook but once you are ready you'll be happy with the result... and as I said the preparation process itself is very unique and interesting by itself. So enjoy cooking it!

Ingredients:

Chicken:

1 lb. boneless chicken breast, cubed

4-6 carrots, sliced into 1/4" pieces

1 can bamboo shoots

12-15 dried hot peppers

Olive oil

Sauce: (Thoroughly mix all ingredients before preparation)

6 tbsp. soy sauce + 3 tbsp. water (or 9 tbsp. of low-sodium soy sauce)

2-3 tbsp. cornstarch

Chopped fresh ginger or powdered dry ginger (to taste, usually 3 tbsp.)

3 tbsp. Sherry

Instructions:

1. Place the peppers and 1 tbsp. of cooking oil in a wok.

2. Brown the peppers under medium-high heat, then remove them to a plate.

3. Place the cubed chicken in the wok and cook until pink color disappears (2-5 min).

4. Remove the chicken from the wok.

5. Add 1 tbsp. of oil to the wok, and add the carrots.

6. Stir-fry until carrots begin to soften. (If you prefer soft vegetables, you can add several tablespoons of water to the carrots and steam them for 5 min.

7. Add the bamboo shoots and stir-fry 1-2 minutes.

8. Add the (browned) peppers, chicken, and the sauce to the wok.

9. Stir under medium heat until the sauce thickens.