General Tso’s Chicken
From what I read, General Tso’s Chicken originated in Hunan, China. However almost nobody in Hunan has ever heard of this dish, which is the most famous Hunan dish in America. It became popular in America through some enterprising Taiwanese chefs who opened Hunan restaurants in New York in the 1970s. To appeal to American diners, the chefs adapted the very spicy sauces to less spicy and sweeter to suit the American taste. General Tso’s Chicken is one of the most popular Chinese take away dish in the United States. This restaurant favourite dish is also known as General Tsao’s or Tao’s or Tzo’s Chicken. Whatever it’s called, the great news is it’s not that tedious to prepare it at home.
- Prep time
- --
- Cook time
- Not listed
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 2 cups Vegetable oil (for frying)
- 300 g Boneless skinless chicken meat (thigh or breast, cut into bite size pieces)
- 1 Egg
- 1 tablespoon Chinese wine
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
- 1 pinch white pepper
- 1/2 cup Cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon Baking powder
- 1 tablespoon Vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoon green onion (Chopped )
- 1 clove Garlic
- 4-5 pieces Dried red chillies (rinsed and deseeded)
- 1 strip Orange zest
- 2 1/2 tablespoons Sugar
- 1/2 tablespoon Chinese wine
- 3 slices Ginger (minced)
- 2 tablespoon Chinese rice vinegar
- 2 1/2 tablespoon Soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon Water (or chicken broth)
- 1 teaspoon Sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon Peanut oil
- 1 teaspoon Cornstarch
- 2 tablespoon Water
Instructions
- 1
Marinate the chicken cubes with Chinese wine, salt, pepper and sugar for at least 15 minutes. Heat oil in wok or deep fryer on high heat.
- 2
Beat the egg in a mixing bowl. Add the chicken cubes and mix well. Mix in the cornstarch and baking powder a little bit at a time until the chicken cubes are well coated.
- 3
Deep fry the chicken cubes in batches one by one until they turns golden brown and begin to float (about 3 minutes). Remove from wok and allow to cool as you fry the next batch. Once all the chicken cubes has been fried, refry the chicken, starting with the batch that was fried first. Cook until the chicken cubes turn deep golden brown (about 2 minutes). Drain on paper towel lined plate.
- 4
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in wok over high heat. Stir in green onions, garlic, chillies and orange zest. Cook until garlic turns golden brown and the chillies brighten (a minute or two). Add the sugar, ginger, chicken broth, vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil and peanut oil. Bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes.
- 5
Dissolve 1 teaspoon cornstarch into water. Stir into the boiling sauce. Return to a boil, cook until the sauce thickens (1 minute). Stir in the fried chicken cubes into the boiling sauce. Reduce heat to low and cook for a few minutes until the chicken cubes absorbs some of the sauce and is well coated.
- 6
Sprinkle some chopped green onions on top and served hot with steam rice.