Kung Pao Chicken (Frango Xadrez): Juicy, Easy Traditional Chinese Recipe in 20 Minutes
Receitas
Glossário Culinário
Skillet
A skillet (frying pan) is a low pan with a wide mouth and a long handle, made for cooking over direct, dry heat: sautéing, browning, frying and searing. It is where kung pao chicken gains color in minutes, where pancake batter spreads into a thin disc, and where ground-beef pancakes brown evenly before filling.
Characteristics
A good skillet distributes heat evenly, has a flat bottom that sits firmly on the burner and sides at just the right height to keep food from escaping when stirring. Nonstick skillets call for silicone or wooden utensils and medium heat so the coating lasts; cast-iron ones retain heat like few others and go from stovetop to oven, but need careful drying against rust; stainless-steel ones stand up to high heat and brown very well, with a drizzle of oil so nothing sticks. Size follows appetite: small mouth for eggs and tapiocas, medium for everyday cooking and large when the recipe feeds the whole family.
Uses in the kitchen
The skillet is home to quick sautés of vegetables and strips of meat, fried eggs and breaded foods, sweet and savory pancakes, tapiocas and seared steak and chicken. It is also where flour is toasted for farofa, butter is melted with herbs, and pastas are finished, spending a final minute in the sauce to absorb flavor.
Substitutions
- Wok: swaps in well for Asian-style sautés such as kung pao chicken, with high sides helping to stir without spilling.
- Griddle (chapa): replaces the skillet for grilled meats and sandwiches, with more surface to cook a batch at once.
- Low pot or shallow casserole: fills in for sautés and sauces that need more liquid than the skillet holds.
- Omelet pan: a small, deep skillet, ideal when the recipe is individual, such as an American pancake or a tapioca.
Fun facts
A crowded skillet does not fry, it steams: browning in batches gives better color and crispness. Preheating for a minute or two before the oil keeps food from sticking right away. And a scratched nonstick skillet loses its magic: if food started sticking always in the same spot, it is time to retire the pan.
