CPK’s Kung Pao Spaghetti
A copycat recipe that you can make right at home in less than 20 minutes. And it tastes even better than the restaurant version!
Have you ever had California Pizza Kitchen’s Kung Pao Spaghetti? I’ve had it on many occasions but as good as it is, I’m just not comfortable spending $15 on a lunch dish for myself, especially when it’s during my lunch break. But now, I never have to order this because I can make it right at home in just 20 minutes!
Now if you’ve never had the CPK version, this is really a Chinese take-out favorite tossed in spaghetti noodles. It’s wonderfully flavorful and savory with that extra spicy kick to it, and there’s plenty of chicken to go around for everyone, unlike CPK who adds in a couple of pieces of chicken and then charges an additional $3 for it.
And f you want it completely vegetarian, you could even add some fried tofu cubes. That actually sounds better than the chicken. I’ll definitely be trying that next time!
CPK's Kung Pao Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 boneless, skinless thin-sliced chicken breasts
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup dry roasted peanuts
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
For the sauce
- ½ cup reduced sodium soy sauce
- ½ cup chicken broth
- ½ cup dry sherry
- 2 tablespoons red chili paste with garlic, or more, to taste
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, chicken broth, dry sherry, red chili paste, sugar, red wine vinegar, cornstarch and sesame oil; set aside.
- In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; drain well.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper, to taste. Add to skillet and cook, flipping once, until cooked through, about 3-4 minutes per side. Let cool before dicing into bite-size pieces; set aside.
- Add garlic to the skillet and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in soy sauce mixture and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until thickened, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in pasta, chicken, peanuts and green onions.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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Next time I make this again, I will skip the dry sherry. It was too much for me. Other than that, it was delicious.
This is delicious! Everyone in my family loved it. I didn’t have sherry so I used mirin cooking wine and it was wonderful. I also added fresh spinach while thickening the sauce. Broccoli sounds good too. Definitely will be making this again soon and will be trying more of your recipes. Thanks!
Just finished inhaling this for dinner. I didn’t have sherry so I used 3/4 cup chicken broth and 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar and it turned out amazing. It was spicy and delicious and made enough for leftovers which will keep me happy tomorrow! Excellent recipe.
Okay, we tried this tonight and it was fantastic!!!!!!!!!!!!! The only thing I would change is to omit the salt when frying the chicken, as it seemed a bit ‘salty’. But maybe that is personal taste. Thank you for sharing this recipe. Definitely going to be a repeat over and over.
OMG…..delish……..thanks so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tried the Garlic butter shrimp loved it a farm girl at heart your dishes are easy will be serving shrimp fried rice tonight thanks Chung- ah keep sending them I’ll keep trying
I just made this recipe for supper and it was absolutely delicious! For our tastes, we also added peppers. YUMM!! Thanks for a great, easy recipe. I can’t wait to try more! 🙂
Thanks! Great recipe – easy and delicious! I used broccoli instead of chicken and it was amazing. The broccoli soaks up the sauce and all you have to do is steam it so it’s still a little crispy before putting it in. (And yes, I noticed that too Theresa, and used linguine instead and it worked out perfectly. I think spaghetti would have been too tubular, but it’s totally up to your preference).
Yum!
Can you omit the peanuts or does it add to the flavor. Looks good but my son in allergic to peanuts?
The peanuts add a bit of crunch and saltiness to the dish but feel free to omit as needed.
Hi, It says spaghetti in the directions but the picture looks more like a flat noodle like fettuchini or something like that maybe?
Debbie, I have made this using spaghetti and fettuccine, and both work really well for this recipe.
Thank you for the nice recipe. Have a Wonderful Weekend!
This looks so good, I can’t wait to try it. The noodles in your pic look flat, like linguine, is that what you used?
I actually used spaghetti noodles but feel free to use what you have on hand – linguine, fettuccine, etc.
This was so good my guys were fighting over the leftovers the next day!
Looks so delicious. It is going to be our dinner tonight!
Thanks for a great recipe…
Cheers!
Ice
My husband’s favorite restaurant! Yummm….love this recipe.
Hi Chung Ah,
I don’t have red wine vinegar and dry sherry, and I wonder if I can subsitute them with chinkiang vinegar and shiaoxing wine ?
Thanks!
It is best to use the ingredients listed out to obtain the best results possible. By using these substitutions, I cannot speak for how much this will change the taste/texture of the overall dish.
hi Natalie,
I was wondering of the same thing. Did you try the substitutions? How was it?
I was thinking of using Xiao xing and black vinegar or apple cider..
I’ve just found your great blog through Pinterest. Can’t wait to try your recipes. Everything looks delicious and very achievable!
I’ll be making this for dinner tonight!!
Made this last night. Cut the chili to 2 tablespoons and it was still too hot for me. Will make again using 1 tabl. Very flavorful though!
Quick question, is the red chili garlic sauce Siracha or Sambal Olek(rooster on the label) ? That looks so good. I’m drooling!
The red chili garlic sauce is Sambal Oelek. Sriracha is hot sauce (aka rooster sauce).
Just made this last night and it was fantastic! I think I’ll throw in some red bell pepper next time to add more color but it was awesome and the family loved it.