Szechuan Chick­en with Black and White Gar­lic, Red Pep­pers and Pistachios

(serves four)

4 chick­en breast fil­lets, cut in bite-size pieces
1 head black gar­lic, cloves squeezed out and sliced
5 cloves gar­lic, minced
3 tbsps soy sauce
2 tbsps sesame oil
1 small hot red chilli, deseed­ed and sliced thin
1 bunch scal­lions (spring onions) sliced: white and green parts
1 2‑inch knob of gin­ger, peeled and sliced rather thick
4 red pep­pers, cut in bite-size pieces
1 tsp peanut oil
1 cup shelled raw pistachios

This dish is a win­ner on many lev­els: it’s a snap to make and you can have every­thing on hand in your pantry except for the chick­en and pep­pers. It’s pun­gent and unfor­get­table from the two sorts of gar­lic, and slic­ing the gin­ger instead of minc­ing it adds a sur­pris­ing ele­ment of spice and energy.

Com­bine all the ingre­di­ents except the pep­pers and pis­ta­chios in a medi­um bowl and stir around thor­ough­ly to coat the chick­en. Mar­i­nate for as long as you like: at least 15 minutes.

Heat a wok or fry­ing pan and throw in the con­tents of the chick­en bowl. Stir fry over a high heat JUST until chick­en is cooked, per­haps 4 min­utes depend­ing on your heat: be brave and stop before it’s too done because the ten­der­ness is an unbe­liev­able addi­tion to the dish. It will cook a bit when you take it off the heat, any­way. Remove from wok with a slot­ted spoon and place in your serv­ing bowl. In the oil and sauce left behind in the wok, fry the pep­pers until just soft­ened, then remove from the wok to the serv­ing bowl.

Still over high heat, add the peanut oil to the wok and fry the pis­ta­chios for sev­er­al min­utes, until they’re crunchy instead of chewy, but take care not to scorch them. Throw the chick­en and pep­pers back into the wok and stir till every­thing’s hot. Serve with steamed rice.