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| Kung Pao Chicken/Gong Bao Chicken |
Kung Pao chicken, also known as Gong Bao chicken, is a traditional Sichuan dish which is very popular among the masses because of its spicy taste of dried chili peppers, tender chicken cubes and crunchy peanuts. The classic spicy stir-fry dish originated in the Sichuan Province of central-western China and includes Sichuan peppercorns. In western countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States, Kung Pao chicken is a mainstay of Chinese cuisine, like Italian pasta.
In standard Mandarin, Kung Pao chicken is gongbaojiding. Today, gongbaojiding is available in every Chinese restaurant, big or small. But on the menu of some restaurants, the dish is written as Kung Pao chicken.
When talking about Gong Bao Chicken, we cannot forget its inventor Ding Baozhen. According to History of the Qing Dynasty: Ding Baozhen, styled Zhihuang, was born in Pingyuan of Guizhou Province. He became a candidate in the highest imperial examinations in the third year of the reign of Emperor Xianfeng, and became the governor-general of Sichuan Province in the second year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu. Allegedly, Ding Baozhen was an expert of recipe and liked eating chicken and peanuts. He especially liked spicy food. While he worked as the governor-general of Sichuan, he invented the dish of deep frying chicken cubes, dry chili and peanuts together. This dish was originally the home dish of Ding’s family, but later, it became a household name. But few people knew why it is called Gong Bao Chicken.
The so-called “Gong Bao” was actually Ding Baozhen’s honorary. According to the Dictionary of Official Positions of Various Dynasties in China, officials in the Ming and the Qing dynasties had honorary titles. The highest honorary titles include “Tai Shi,” “Shao Shi,” “Tai Fu,” “Shao Fu,” “Tai Bao,” “Shao Bao,” “Tai Shi for the Prince,” “Shao Shi for the Prince,” “Tai Fu for the Prince,” “Shao Fu for the Prince,” Tai Bao for the Prince,” and “Shao Bao for the Prince.” The above-mentioned honorary titles were for the important officials in the imperial court and they did not mean power in reality. Some titles were honored after their death. These titles were known as “Gong title.” After the reign of Emperor Xianfeng, there were no “whatever Shi” for honorary titles while “whatever Bao” was used more frequently. Thus, these honorary titles had a nickname – Gong Bao. Ding Baozhen worked in Sichuan for a decade. He was upright and made a lot of achievements. He died at his post in the 11th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu. In order to praise his performances, the imperial court of the Qing Dynasty posthumously honored him the title of “Tai Bao for the Prince.” As mentioned above, “Tai Bao for the Prince” was one of the “Gong Bao.” Thus, the dish he invented got its name Gong Bao Chicken. This is a commemoration for Ding Baozhen.
As time goes by, many people know nothing about Gong Bao and it is no strange that they write Gong Bao Chicken into Kung Pao Chicken. This mistake goes counter against the idea of commemorating Ding Baozhen.
You may find a Chinese restaurant for this delicious dish.
