This version of Kung Pao chicken has all the flavors you’d expect from the classic dish, but in a comforting, homestyle spaghetti and meatballs package!
A classic Asian takeout meal combines with a hearty Italian comfort meal in these Kung Pao chicken spaghetti and meatballs. This dish has great spicy/savory flavors in a fun to eat style meal… once you try this Asian-Italian fusion style meal, you may not want regular Kung Pao chicken again!
When we order takeout from our local Chinese place, I rarely get Kung Pao chicken. Why, you ask? Because I’m a bit of a spiciness wimp lol. I prefer to make it at home, that way I can control the heat level 🙂 One time I ordered it and couldn’t eat more than a few bites… now that’s a tragedy!
Easy to make, this meal is one you can make the parts up ahead of time, which makes for a fast meal!
This spaghetti and meatballs probably isn’t one for your kiddos, but that makes it perfect for a date night 🙂
I wish I could take credit for creating the sauce recipe and the meatball recipe, but I can’t… I got the sauce recipe from Damn Delicious and found the meatballs through Fit Foodie Finds. Once I saw both of them on Pinterest it just hit me… why not combine the two and make an Asian spaghetti and meatballs!
Feeling vegetarian at the moment? Omit the meatballs and enjoy the yummy Kung Pao spaghetti on it’s own!
You can also add whatever veggies you’d like to the dish… the sky is the limit!
The next time you’re feeling like ordering some takeout… try this Kung Pao chicken spaghetti and meatballs instead!!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- KUNG PAO SPAGHETTI:
- 1 pound spaghetti or linguini
- 1 tsp vegetable oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup dry roasted peanuts roughly chopped
- 2 green onions sliced
- 2/3 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup chicken broth or stock
- 1/2 cup dry sherry can substitute with equal amount of chicken broth or stock
- 2 Tbsp red chili paste with garlic to taste
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- CHICKEN MEATBALLS:
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1/3 cup yellow onion finely diced or grated
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup oats
- 1 Tbsp sriracha sauce
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground pepper
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- FOR THE MEATBALL SAUCE:
- 4 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp sriracha sauce
- 2 Tbsp red chili paste with garlic
- 2 Tbsp honey
Instructions
- MAKE THE KUNG PAO SPAGHETTI:
- Whisk together soy sauce, chicken broth, sherry, chili paste, brown sugar, rice vinegar, cornstarch and sesame oil in a small mixing bowl and set aside.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add some salt and cook spaghetti according to package directions for al dente. Drain and toss with a drizzle of vegetable oil to keep from clumping.
- In a large skillet, heat vegetable oil over MED heat and add minced garlic. Saute, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds.
- Pour in reserved sauce mixture, bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and let cook until slightly thickened. This will take about 2 minutes.
- Toss drained pasta in the sauce.
- MAKE THE KUNG PAO CHICKEN MEATBALLS:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.
- To a mixing bowl, combine meatball ingredients and mix until well combined. Careful not to over mix though, otherwise the meatballs will be tough.
- Scoop meat mixture into tablespoon sized balls and roll into a ball. If the meat sticks to your hands too much, wet your hands slightly with water.
- Place meatballs on prepared cookie sheet and bake approximately 25 minutes, until they begin to turn golden brown and are cooked through.
- To a small mixing bowl, whisk together sauce ingredients and set aside.
- Once meatballs are done, remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes.
- Toss meatballs in sauce.
- TO SERVE:
- Serve a plate of the Kung Pao spaghetti with several chicken meatballs on top. Garnish with sesame seeds, sliced green onions, and chopped peanuts.
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Chef Tips
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
afra says
Lovely recipe. The only thing I changed is that I left out the flour and only used an egg white for the meatballs (used chicken thigh meat and just threw it in the foodprocessor with all the other ingredients) Added some spinach and shelled edamame as a side dish. Easy, comforting. Thanks for sharing
Nathalie says
Just found this recipe and it is exactly what I was hoping to find – having friends over and I want to make a slightly fancy-ish Asian fusion style meal! Planning to serve this with an Asian Style sesame coleslaw/cabbage salad as an appetizer and homemade vanilla-champagne macarons and mango-passion fruit sorbet as a dessert. I am very excited! Thank you so much.