Spicy General Tso’s Chicken
This Spicy General Tso’s Chicken recipe is about as easy as it gets. It starts with some cubed chicken breast, although chicken wings also work well. Sweet, salty, spicy, and sour flavors all join to create a truly delicious meal that rivals the best take-out restaurants. Quick, easy, and oh-so-tasty. What came as a big surprise was that my 7-year old son actually asked to try this dish, ate so many pieces of the chicken without even realizing the heat from the chilies. This is an amazing and best-ever chicken recipe with sticky, savory and sweet taste. This recipe is so good you will want to lick the plate!
Sweet, salty, spicy, and sour flavors all join to create a truly delicious meal.
I’ve never thought to just make it myself, but the flavors were all ingredients I had on hand and so I went for it and crossed my fingers. Et Voila. Success! I am definitely going to add this General Tso chicken to my daily menu.
I am definitely going to add this General Tso chicken to my daily menu.
The secret ingredient is always LOVE
Some Facts about Spicy General Tso’s Chicken
- The dish was originally introduced to the US by a Chinese chef from Taiwan. He had a fancy chicken dish, and wanted to name it after his home town hero, General Tso/Zuo .
- The Chinese chef is from Hunan Province in China. The techniques and the flavors of the dish were inspired by Hunan cuisine.
- General Tso does exist in Chinese history but he has nothing to do with this dish.
Spicy General Tso’s Chicken
Ingredients
For marinating and coating the chicken
- 600 grams chicken breast (cut in cubes about 1 inch)
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 egg (beaten)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup cornstarch (for coating)
- 1 cup flour (add more if needed for double coating)
For making sauce
- 2 tbsp regular soy sauce
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 2 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tbsp rice wine (i used shaoxing cooking wine)
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 3/4 cup water (or chicken broth)
- 1 tbsp garlic (minced)
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
For deep frying coated chicken
- 3-4 cups cooking oil
For making Spicy General Tso’s Chicken
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
- 5 pieces red chillies (chopped)
- 3 tbsp green onions (chooped)
Instructions
For marinating and coating the chicken
- Wash chicken breast thoroughly and drain excess water. Cut into cubes around 1 inch or 1 1/2 inches and put in a bowl.
- In a different bowl, beat the egg then add the light soy sauce, black pepper and beat again to mix well the ingredients.
- Pour the egg mixture into the bowl of chicken and stir so that all chicken pieces are covered. Set aside for 20 minutes to marinate.
- After 20 minutes, add cornstarch to the chicken and stir/mix well.
- Take a pan or bowl, put 1 cup of flour and coat each chicken piece. Make sure all pieces are well coated with flour.
- Deep fry the coated chicken pieces for 3 to 4 minutes. Stir occasionally so they won’t stick together. When done remove the chicken from the oil and put in a metal strainer to drain excess oil. Set aside.
For making the sauce
- Pour the soy sauce in a mixing bowl, add oyster sauce, sugar, water, rice wine, vinegar, sesame oil, garlic and cornstarch. Mix well until cornstarch fully dissolved.
For cooking General Tso’s Chicken
- In a wok, heat 2 tbsp of oil and saute green onions and chilies for 30 seconds.
- Take the sauce mixture and stir before adding to the wok. Let simmer for a few minutes until the sauce thickens.
- When sauce is thick enough, Add the cooked chicken and fold to evenly coat all the pieces.
- Transfer in a serving plate and garnish with chopped green onions and sesame seeds. C’est fini! Serve and Bon Appetit!
