General Tso’s Chicken is a Chinese – American recipe invented several years ago and is commonly served in North American restaurants. Actually, it was invented in America and has no ties to Mainland China in its history. It is, however, incredibly delicious. There are several variations to the recipe, but this variation is ours. Give it a try and let us know what you think.
There are a few tips and suggestions to making the recipe. To begin with, we use boneless, skinless chicken breasts, as they are so healthy, due to the lack of fat on the meat, and easy to work with. Any cut of chicken will suffice, however. You will just have to adjust the cooking time according to the cut you use.
We use a heavy, dark, Thai soy sauce in the recipe because of the delicious malt flavor it has. If you don’t have it, or cannot find it, you can use regular soy sauce.
The recipe uses Hoisen sauce which can be picked up in just about any grocery store around the world. If you cannot find it, you can simply leave it out.
Rice wine vinegar can be substituted for cooking wine.
The amounts of the rest of the ingredients, such as the garlic and ginger, can be adjusted according to your liking. It never hurts to add a little more of each.
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- 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped into 1 inch cubes
- 1 egg
- 2 tbsp of corn starch
- salt and pepper to taste
- oil for cooking
- Sauce:
- 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 1 thumb size ginger, chopped
- 3 to 4 dried chilies
- 2 tbsp of soy sauce
- 1 tbsp of corn starch
- 2 tbsp of rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp of hoisen sauce (Optional)
- 1 tsp of sugar
- spring onions for garnish
- 1/2 cup of chicken broth
- Add the chicken to a bowl. Put the corn starch, egg, salt, and pepper over it. Using your hands or a spoon, mix until the chicken is completely covered. Set it aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine the soy sauce, corn starch, rice wine vinegar, Hoisen sauce, chicken stock, and sugar. Mix until well combined. Set it aside.
- Add about 2 inches of oil to the bottom of a pan, and heat it to 350 degrees F (180 C).
- Place the chicken in the oil and fry it, in batches, until it’s golden brown. This should take five minutes or so. Set it aside on a plate lined with a paper towel.
- Add some oil to a pan and put the garlic, chilies, and ginger in. Fry them, over medium high heat, until fragrant.
- Pour the sauce in, stir, and bring it to a boil.
- Put the chicken back in, toss it several times to be sure it’s covered in the sauce, and allow it to boil for about 2 minutes.
- Serve over a bed of steamed rice, garnish with some chopped green onions, and enjoy you General Tso’s chicken.
