Panda Express Black Pepper Chicken (Copycat)

by Sabrina Snyder

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222 Comments

4.92 from 69 votes
4
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
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A lighter stir-fry Black Pepper Chicken with crisp veggies and a bold peppery flavor. Just like the takeout favorite from Panda Express!

Among my Panda Express recipes, my Crisp and Juicy Slow Cooker Chicken, is what we like to make at home every Sunday night (without exception), and One Pan Baked Chicken and Rice. Sounds like a lot of chicken, right? We have young kids, so plain chicken and baked brown rice are staples in our diets around here.

Sabrina’s Panda Express Black Pepper Chicken (Copycat) Recipe

This tender chicken is marinated ginger-soy chicken in a peppery black pepper sauce with celery and onions, that tastes exactly like the take out version you love! This recipe is really low in fat and WW points, if you follow the program! So sit back and eat some delicious Panda Express Black Pepper Chicken because it fits into your New Year’s resolution! 

Recipe Card

Dinner, then Dessert

Panda Express Black Pepper Chicken (Copycat) Recipe

A lighter stir-fry Black Pepper Chicken with crisp veggies and a bold peppery flavor. Just like the takeout favorite from Panda Express!
Yield 4
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Course Dinner
Cuisine Chinese
Author Sabrina Snyder
Peper chicken with veggies in a bowl
PrintRate

Ingredients
 

  • 1 pound chicken breast
  • 2 stalks celery , thinly sliced on a bias
  • 1/2 medium white onion , chopped into 3/4-to-1 inch squares
  • 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 tablespoon chili vinegar*
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons coarse ground black pepper (grind fresh)
  • 2 tablespoons corn starch
  • 4 tablespoons vegetable oil , divided

Instructions

  • Cut the chicken into 1-inch bites, and marinade with 2 tablespoons of the soy sauce, ½ tablespoon of the chili vinegar, cornstarch, and the ground ginger for 30 minutes.
  • Using two tablespoons of oil, heat a wok on high.
  • When oil is hot and ripples as you move the pan, add the chicken.
  • Cook on high heat until browned.
  • Remove from the pan and add in the celery and onions with the remaining two tablespoons of oil.
  • Cook the veggies on high for 30-45 seconds.
  • You aren’t looking to soften them, just to slightly cook them.
  • Add in the remaining two tablespoons of soy sauce, the remaining ½ tablespoon of chili vinegar, the cooked chicken and the black pepper.
  • Cook for 15 seconds to combine everything and serve immediately.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Mye’s Kitchen
*I bought this to stay authentic to Mye’s recipe on the first pass, after this I just made my own, ½ cup vinegar with one jalapeno soaked for 30 minutes, then remove the jalapeno and use 1 tablespoon for this recipe. I go through the vinegar quickly as we make this recipe quite frequently.

Nutrition

Calories: 289kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 723mg | Potassium: 580mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 136IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 1mg

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Variations

  • Spice: Are you making this dish for someone sensitive to pepper? How about someone who likes to kick up the heat? You can adjust the spice level any way you want. Add in some more coarsely ground pepper and you can even try adding chili flakes. I suggest adding it in ¼ teaspoon increments and then taste it before adding more.
  • Meat: You can adjust this recipe by substituting beef or pork for the chicken. Any protein will taste delicious with this recipe so try it out using your favorite!
  • Veggies: Swap the veggies out if you don’t like celery. Substitute onions, fennel, carrots, radishes, or leaks. You can also add these veggies to the mix, just be careful not to add too much without also increasing seasonings too. Otherwise it will lessen the flavors.

More Panda Express Copycat Recipes

Panda Express Black Pepper Chicken is marinated ginger soy chicken, in a peppery black pepper sauce with celery and onions that tastes exactly like the Panda Express version you love! And really low in fat and WW points!

Images used in previous versions of this post:

Panda Express Black Pepper Chicken is marinated ginger soy chicken, in a peppery black pepper sauce with celery and onions that tastes exactly like the Panda Express version you love! And really low in fat and WW points!
bowl of chicken and black pepper and veggies
bowl of chicken and black pepper
bowl of chicken and black pepper and onions and celery

About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Sabrina Snyder is a professionally trained personal and private chef of over 10 years who is the creator and developer of all the recipes on Dinner, then Dessert.

She is also the author of the cookbook Dinner, then Dessert – Satisfying Meals Using Only 3, 5 or 7 Ingredients, published by Harper Collins.

She started Dinner, then Dessert as a business in her office as a lunch service for her coworkers who admired her lunches before going to culinary school and becoming a full time personal chef and private chef.

As a personal chef Sabrina would cook for families one day a week and cook their entire week of dinners. All grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning was done along with instructions on reheating. As a private chef she cooked for private parties and cooked in family homes in the evenings for families on a nightly basis after working as a personal chef during the day.

Sabrina has been certified as a ServSafe Manager since 2007 and was a longstanding member of the USPCA Personal Chef Association including being on the board of the Washington DC Chapter of Chefs in the US Personal Chef Association when they won Chapter of the year.

As a member of the community of food website creators Sabrina Snyder has spoken at many conferences regarding her experiences as a food writer including the Indulge Food Conference, Everything Food Conference, Haven Food Conference and IACP Annual Food Professionals Conference.

Sabrina lives with her family in sunny California.

See more posts by Sabrina

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Comments

  1. Delicious! This is on rotation in our house.
    I use the juice from jarred jalepenos or banana peppers in place of the chili vinegar. Works great as a substitute when you’re in a hurry

    Reply

  3. Molly 26, Jan. 06 ~ This was so quick and simple to make. We loved it. Although the next time I make it, I will turn the heat down before adding the meat. The oil splattered all over! We had this served over white rice. I was so disappointed when Panda Express too this item off of their menu. I’m very pleased to have found this recipe and will be making it often. Thank you for sharing.

    Reply

    1. Oh oh, good idea on turning down the heat before adding meat and so glad you enjoyed the finished product. Thanks Molly for your great feedback and for the five star review!

      Reply

  4. I can hardly wait to try this recipe. I was wondering if I could use the juice(vinegar) from jarred pickled jalapenos in lieu of the chili vinegar?

    Reply

    1. Hi Carol. Interesting idea! There are so many variations of pickled jalapeno recipes. It’s difficult to guess how the recipe would turn out with that substitution choice. Let me know what you decided to do and how your chicken turns out! Enjoy!

      Reply

  5. This is great! My family makes this all the time. It’s simple, delicious, and easy on the wallet. I’ve made it with pork instead of chicken and it was just as good, and I started using Tabasco instead of the chili vinegar.

    Reply

  6. This recipe is so simple and lends itself to variation. I’ve used different veggies at various times, and since going vegan, have done it with tofu instead of chicken with great results as well! Thank you for a quick and delicious meal!

    Reply

  7. This recipe is delicious! I’ve tried a few black pepper chicken recipes and this one is easy and provides all the tips to make it come out right. It is on my regular rotation. Thank you so much.

    Reply