General Tso’s Chicken
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This General Tso’s Chicken recipe features perfectly crispy coated chicken is tossed in a deliciously sweet and spicy sauce and served with steamed rice. Ready in less than 30 minutes and better than the takeout version, for spicy food lovers General Tso’s Chicken is totally irresistible!
What is General Tso’s Chicken?
General Tso’s Chicken has been one of America’s most popular Chinese takeout dishes for decades. You’ll find it on practically every Chinese menu in every Chinese restaurant in the U.S.
Bite-sized pieces of tender chicken are dipped in a coating and fried until perfectly crispy, then tossed in a deliciously sweet and spicy sauce. Steamed broccoli is a popular accompaniment in many takeout places and of course a bed of fragrant steamed rice. For spicy food lovers, General Tso’s Chicken is practically irresistible!
Where Did General Tso’s Chicken Originate?
Its origin goes back to the 1950’s in Taiwan where it was first created by a Hunan chef named Peng Chang-Kuei. He developed this dish in his restaurant and named it after a 19th Hunanese general. While the original dish of the 50’s shares some similarities to today’s version (bold, hot, spicy, heavy, salty), the version we know today that is sold as a popular takeout dish is largely a Chinese-American invention. And a delicious one at that!
So the next time you’re craving General Tso’s chicken, skip the takeout joint. Not only will this rival your favorite takeout or restaurant version, it’ll be hot and ready in less than 30 minutes!
General Tso’s Chicken Recipe
Let’s get started!
Combine the sauce ingredients in another bowl until the sugar and cornstarch are dissolved and set aside until later.
Place the chicken in a medium-sized mixing bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the marinade ingredients together and then pour over the cubed chicken. Stir to thoroughly coat and set aside.
Combine the coating ingredients in a medium-sized bowl.
Pick up the chicken pieces and shake off the excess marinade, then dredge the pieces in the cornstarch mixture, evenly coating the pieces and shaking off the excess.
Heat the oil in the deep fryer to 375 degrees F. I’m using my Presto Cool Daddy Deep Fryer which is perfect for smaller amounts like this.
Note: If you don’t have a deep fryer you can also fill a non-stick skillet with an inch or so of oil and fry the chicken in that.
Working in batches, deep fry the chicken until the chicken is cooked through, golden brown and crispy, about 3-4 minutes.
Place the chicken on paper towels to drain.
Heat the tablespoon of oil in a wok or large heavy frying pan over medium-high heat. Fry the garlic, ginger and red chilies for about 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the sauce and simmer until thickened, a minute or two.
Add the fried chicken and stir to thoroughly coat. Simmer for a minute until the chicken has absorbed the sauce but is still crispy. Stir in the green onions.
Serve immediately with steamed rice and broccoli (traditional in many takeout places).
Enjoy!
For more delicious Chinese recipes be sure to try my:
- Mongolian Beef
- Mongolian Chicken
- Orange Chicken
- Kung Pao Chicken
- Beef and Broccoli
- Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Orange Beef
- Sesame Chicken
- Egg Foo Young
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General Tso’s Chicken
Ingredients
- For the Marinade:
- 2 large egg whites
- 2 tablespoons tamari (or light soy sauce)
- 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine (can substitute dry sherry)
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts , cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- For the Coating:
- 3/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour gluten free: substitute GF flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- For the Sauce:
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons tamari (or light soy sauce)
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine (can substitute dry sherry)
- 3 tablespoons white granulated sugar
- or sugar alternative (for low sugar)
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil (e.g., avocado, peanut, canola)
- 2 large cloves garlic , minced
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 6 small dried red chilies , seeded and broken into pieces
- 3 green onions , cut into 1 inch pieces
- oil for deep frying (e.g. peanut, canola, avocado)
Instructions
- Place the chicken in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Set aside.In a small bowl, whisk the marinade ingredients together and then pour over the cubed chicken. Stir to thoroughly coat and set aside.Combine the sauce ingredients and stir until the sugar and cornstarch are dissolved. Set aside.
- Pick up the chicken pieces and shake off the excess marinade, then dredge the pieces in the cornstarch coating mixture, shaking off the excess.Working in batches, deep fry the chicken in oil heated to 375ºF until the chicken is cooked through, golden brown and crispy, about 3-4 minutes. Place the chicken on paper towels to drain.Note: If you don't have a deep fryer you can also fill a non-stick skillet with an inch or so of oil and fry the chicken in that.
- Heat the tablespoon of oil in a wok or large heavy frying pan over medium-high heat. Fry the garlic, ginger and red chilies for about 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the sauce and simmer until thickened. Add the fried chicken and stir to thoroughly coat. Simmer for a minute until the chicken has absorbed the sauce but is still crispy. Stir in the green onions.Serve immediately with steamed rice and broccoli (traditional in many takeout places).
Nutrition
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet June 17, 2019
Hi, I’m Kimberly Killebrew and welcome to Daring Gourmet where you'll find delicious originals, revitalized classics, and simply downright good eats from around the world! Originally from Germany, later raised in England, world-traveled, and now living in the U.S., from my globally-influenced kitchen I invite you to tour the world through your taste buds!
Do you think I could prepare and fry the chicken ahead of time and freeze it? Then warm when I’m ready to use.
Hi Jim, freezing and thawing the fried chicken will make the breading soggy. If you don’t mind the texture then it’s fine to freeze it, but if you want the chicken crispy it will need to be used immediately after frying.
I made this a few times to get a feel for it as I don’t cook Chinese often. No modifications at all – except for the volume of the chicken and sauce/marinade as its so good. Thank-you.
This was absolutely delicious, better than restaurant, thank you!
Can Someone please tell me how many teaspoons a minced clove equals?
Hi Gregory, I just looked it up online and one clove minced is about 1 teaspoon.
This is excellent! Next time I am tripleing it because the single was not enough. Thanks for the detailed directions!
Thank you so much, Elizabeth!
This recipe was my first venture into Chinese food and it is spot on! Next time I make it, I will double the sauce. That is the only change I will make to a fantastic recipe.
Wonderful, GraceJoy, I’m so glad it was a hit, thank you!
Really loved this. I doubled the recipe mostly. My husband doesn’t like it too sweet so I only used 1tbl. Of brown sugar instead of the 6tbls a dbl recipe would have called for and I only increased the hit by 3 peppers. Other than that it was perfect just like the recipe he’s favorite restraunt uses.
Fantastic, I’m so glad you both enjoyed this, thank you for the feedback!