General Tso's Chicken

Name: General Tso's Chicken
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1 lbs boneless, skinless, chicken thigh (cut into 1-inch cubes); 1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce; 1/2 tsp salt; 1/2 tsp black pepper; 1/3 cup cornstarch; 1 whole egg; 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce; 2/3 cup granulated sugar; 1/3 cup chicken broth; 3 tbsp rice vinegar; 1/2 tsp sesame oil; 2 tbsp garlic (minced); 1 tsp ginger (minced); 2 stripes orange peel; 3 1/2 tbsp cornstarch; 1 fresh small red chilli (de-seeded, chopped); 5 tbsp water; 3 tbsp green onions (chopped); sesame seeds (for topping)

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General Tso's chicken is undeniably one of the most popular Chinese takeout dishes in North American, and most definitely one of our favorite dishes. The sweet, tangy, spicy and savory sauce pairs perfectly with the crispy and juicy fried chicken. The sticky and shiny glaze will win anyone over.

Blue Chinese plate topped with general tso's chicken. — The tender and juicy fried chicken is tossed in the sweet and spicy sauce.

If you love orange chicken or sweet and sour pork, you will love this dish. It is traditionally served with steamed broccoli and white rice, but also very delicious with any of our other Chinese dishes.

What is General Tso's Chicken (左宗棠雞)

It is believed that this dish was created in the 1950-1960s by a famous Taiwanese chef and named it after Zuo Zongtang, a military leader from his native Hunan province in China. Hunanese cuisine call for very powerful and intense flavors and spices, but in America, this dish was modified by adding a lot of sugar to appeal to the Western palate. One thing is sure, General Tso's chicken is probably one, of THE most, popular take Chinese dish in North America. The juicy, tender, and crispy chicken bites combined with the sweet and spicy sauce is match made in heave, and this dish is definitely a crowd pleaser. General Tso's chicken consist of 2 main elements: the sauce, the fried chicken. It might seem like an intimidating dish to make, but it's actually pretty simple to make, and you'll get to impress your family and friends!

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All about the Sauce

The sauce is thick, loaded with flavor and is the perfect combination of sweet, spicy, savory and tangy! The beautiful sauce with shiny glaze is the easiest part of this General Tso's Chicken recipe, and it tastes like it’s a lot more complicated than it really is. What is a little bit tricky, is to find the right balance of all the flavors, but by following our recipe, you will have one banging sauce! We love using this low-sodium soy sauce, and this rice vinegar. Feel free to adjust the spice levels, but we do love our food spicy.

Overview of General Tso's chicken with a bowl of rice on the side. — The sauce is the perfect balance of sweet, savory, spicy and tangy!

Making the best Crispy Fried Chicken

Homemade General Tso's Chicken!? Yes please! Just look at that perfect, luscious sauce on the crispy, double-fried chicken... All we need is a bowl of white rice with it and we got ourselves the perfect, comforting meal! What’s amazing is that it looks AND tastes just like the ones in the restaurants. We’ve always thought General Tso's Chicken is hard to make, but it really isn’t, at all! On a side note, in Canada we call this dish General Tao Chicken, which is slightly different than General Tso's Chicken in America. Having perfectly crispy fried chicken is very important for General Tso's Chicken. You don’t want soggy chicken that becomes even more soggy once you put in the sauce. So here are some important tips to have that yummy, crispy chicken!

The batter: It is important to first combine the chicken and beaten egg in a bowl, and then add the cornstarch into the bowl. This is important if you want the batter to stick well onto the chicken and to coat them evenly. The batter should be really thick and sticky. If you combine the egg with the cornstarch before adding the chicken, the batter will be so thick that it would be harder to coat the chicken with it.

Frying the chicken: Now, I know some of you may skip on double frying the chicken to make it a bit healthier. Believe me, we tried it too! But frying the chicken once is just not enough to make the perfect, crispy General Tso's Chicken. If you fry it only once, the chicken will not be able to stay crispy and on top of that, will become extremely soggy once you add the sauce. While double frying may not be the healthiest thing, it does give the best results for a crispy chicken. And we only make this dish when we crave some guilty pleasure, comfort food. So double frying once in a while is okay as long as you don’t overdo it! Our motto is, if you’re gonna do it, do it right!

Oil temperature: It’s important that the oil is hot enough so that the exterior crust can crisp up and become golden brown. If the temperature of the oil is too low, since the chicken are cut into smaller cubes, the chicken will be done cooking before the crust can crisp up and turn golden brown.

Bowl of rice with general tso's chicken. — General Tso's is actually much easier to make than it seems!

FAQ's

Is general tso's chicken spicy?

Yes! This dish is generally spicy, but if you don't feel like having spicy food, skip the chilis.

Can I use chicken breast instead of chicken thighs?

Of course! However, note that the cooking time might differ, and that chicken breast is not as flavorful and tender as chicken thighs.

Ingredients

Fried Chicken Batter

Boneless, skinless chicken thighs is best for this recipe. Brown meat is juicy, more tender and flavorful than chicken breast. However, if you're looking for a healthier alternative, chicken breast will do the trick.
Low-sodium soy sauce will add flavor to the chicken, while not being overly salty.
Salt and black pepper for seasoning.
Cornstarch and egg will create the light and crispy batter of the chicken.

General Tso's Chicken Sauce

Low-sodium soy sauce is better in this recipe, as dark is too strong in flavor and will make the sauce much darker in color.
Granulated sugar, and lot's of it. This is not a healthy recipe by any means!
Chicken broth to add depth and flavor to the sauce.
Rice vinegar will add acidity and balance out the sweetness.
Sesame oil for that nutty note!
Garlic and ginger because this wouldn't be a Chinese dish without it.
Orange peel will add a nice acidity and citrusy note that will make the sauce more complex in flavor.
Cornstarch will serve as a thickening agent to make the sauce thick and sticky.
Red chilli for that spicy flavor.
Water will ensure you have enough sauce to coat all of your chicken.
Green onions and sesame seeds for toppings.

Overview General Tso's chicken on top of white rice. — Serve with a bowl of white rice and steamed vegetables.

Instructions

Prep the chicken. Place the cubed chicken in a mixing bowl. Add the low-sodium soy sauce, salt, and pepper and mix well. Add the beaten egg into the chicken bowl and combine well. Add 2/3 cup of cornstarch into the chicken and egg mixture. Combine until the cornstarch is well mixed into the eggs and all the chicken cubes are well covered with the batter. Let marinade and set aside for 5-10 minutes.

Make the sauce. To make the General Tso sauce, combine the low-sodium soy sauce, chicken broth, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, and sugar in a bowl and mix well. Prepare the cornstarch slurry by mixing cornstarch and water in a bowl. Heat two tablespoons of oil on a pan or a wok on high heat and stir fry the garlic, ginger, chillies, and the strips of orange peel for about 30 seconds or until the ginger and garlic and fragrant and tender. Put heat on medium high and add the sauce mixture into the pan. When the sauce boils, add the cornstarch slurry into the sauce and mix well. Once the sauce boils and becomes thicker, remove the orange peel strips, remove sauce from heat and transfer to a mixing bowl.

Fry the chicken. Fill a deep saucepan with about 1 1/2 inch of oil and heat over high heat. Once the oil reaches about 375 degrees Fahrenheit, slowly and gently add the chicken into the oil one by one. We recommend to work in batches in order to not overcrowd the pan and lower the temperature of the oil. Let fry for about 2 to 3 minutes, or until golden. Remove chicken from oil and drain off excess oil using paper towels. Place the fried chicken on a drying rack and let cool for about 5 minutes. Put the chicken back into the hot oil and fry for another 1 minute and a half or until golden brown and crispy.

Repeat steps with other chicken batches. Note cooking time may vary depending on the size of the chicken cubes and the temperature of the oil. If you do not have a meat thermometer, we suggest to cut one chicken in half after the first batch of frying to ensure that it is well cooked.

Toss everything together. Add the fried chicken into the mixing bowl with the General Tso sauce. Toss until well combined and every fried chicken is evenly covered with the sauce. If the sauce is too thick, add warm water one tablespoon at a time into the sauce before mixing in the chicken until it reaches the desired consistency. Top with toasted sesame seeds and green onions and serve with rice.