General Tso’s Chicken
This from-scratch version of General Tso’s Chicken is the closest recreation we've ever found! If this is one of your favorites when you order Chinese takeout, you HAVE to try it at home!
It wasn’t until we started dating our husband that we started to fall in love with Asian cuisine. He introduced us to Thai, sushi, and memorable Chinese takeout. Most college kids rely on Chinese take out to get them through cram sessions and heartache, but we were always more of a pizza girl. We leaned on Domino’s and the local favorites.
We, of course, had tried Chinese before, but was never crazy about it. All of that changed when we started spending time at our husband’s place on the weekends. When he first mentioned ordering Chinese and we said that we had never found something we liked, he said we had to get General Tso’s, and that we would love it. He knows us all too well, because we absolutely adored it. Between the crisp, battered chicken, the thick sauce, and the generous amount of spice, we were completely smitten. It soon became our favorite take out option, and we found myself craving it.
We had talked about trying to make it at home, but it took us a long time to find a recipe that we thought sounded authentic enough. This one absolutely nails it, and we both love, love, love it.
We were most worried about the chicken breading having that characteristic thick, crisp coating that is so typical of General Tso’s. That was definitely achieved, thanks to including just a little bit of the marinade in the dry batter ingredients. Genius! Everything else came together evenly. As we cooked the sauce, we couldn’t believe how absolutely identical it smelled to the General Tso’s sauce we have come to know and love. Once everything was finished and we dug in, we hardly spoke a word, except to grunt and groan about how phenomenal the food was. And how much it really did taste like General Tso’s chicken.
We like to serve this with simple white jasmine rice and steamed broccoli to replicate the takeout experience, and it’s absolutely rich. If you’ve never used jasmine rice, you have to give it a try! The first time we made it, our husband asked what we did differently to the rice (nothing!) because it tasted so much better than “regular” rice.
This is significantly easier than you might think and doesn’t involve too much prep time, so if you have a hankering for General Tso’s chicken and want to give it a try yourself, you cannot go wrong with this recipe!
One year ago: Refrigerator Bread and Butter Pickles
Four years ago: Peach Crumble Pie
Five years ago: Chocolate and Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars
General Tso's Chicken
Yield: 4 servings A from-scratch recipe for one of the most popular Chinese takeout dishes. Not as difficult as you would think and SO rich!For the Marinade & Sauce:
- ½ cup (137.5 ml) hoisin sauce
- ¼ cup (63.75 ml) white vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1½ cups (375 ml) water
- 1½ pounds (680.39 g) boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) crushed red pepper flakes
For Coating & Frying:
- 3 egg whites
- 1½ cups (192 g) cornstarch
- ½ cup (62.5 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) baking soda
- 4 cups (872 ml) vegetable oil
- 1-2 (1) green onions, thinly sliced (optional, garnish)
- Make the Marinade: Whisk the hoisin sauce, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch, and water in a bowl. Of this mixture, place 6 tablespoons into a zip lock storage bag and add the chicken; seal and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Set aside the remaining marinade in the bowl.
- Make the Sauce: While the chicken is chilling in the marinade, heat the 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Sauté the garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes until fragrant. Add 2 cups of the hoisin marinade to the skillet and simmer, whisking constantly, until the mixture is dark brown and thickened. Remove from heat and cover to keep the sauce warm.
- Prepare the Coatings: Whisk the egg whites in a shallow dish until foamy; set aside. Combine the cornstarch, flour, baking soda, and remaining hoisin marinade in a second shallow dish; mix until it resembles coarse meal.
- Prepare the Chicken: Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and from the marinade. Pat the marinated chicken dry with paper towels. Toss half the chicken into the foamy egg whites until well coated, then dredge the chicken in the cornstarch mixture, pressing to adhere. Transfer the coated chicken to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken.
- Cook the Chicken: Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat until the oil registers 350 degrees. Fry half the chicken until golden brown, about 3 minutes, turning each piece halfway through cooking. Transfer the cooked chicken onto a paper towel lined plate to drain. Return the oil to 350 degrees before frying again. Repeat with the remaining chicken.
- Finish: Warm the sauce over medium heat until simmering. Turn off the heat and add the fried chicken pieces. Toss to coat and serve with sliced green onions to garnish, as well. White jasmine rice and steamed broccoli are favorite sides here!
Notes
Nutritional values are based on one servingThis recipe was originally published on April 16, 2012.
- Yield: 4 servings
- Prep: 45 minutes
- Cook: 15 minutes
- Total: 1 hour 30 minutes
Ingredients
For the Marinade & Sauce:
- ½ cup ( 137.5 ml ) hoisin sauce
- ¼ cup ( 63.75 ml ) white vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1½ cups ( 375 ml ) water
- 1½ pounds ( 680.39 g ) boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
- ½ teaspoon ( 0.5 teaspoon ) crushed red pepper flakes
For Coating & Frying:
- 3 egg whites
- 1½ cups ( 192 g ) cornstarch
- ½ cup ( 62.5 g ) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon ( 0.5 teaspoon ) baking soda
- 4 cups ( 872 ml ) vegetable oil
- 1-2 ( 1 ) green onions, thinly sliced (optional, garnish)
Method
- Make the Marinade: Whisk the hoisin sauce, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch, and water in a bowl. Of this mixture, place 6 tablespoons into a zip lock storage bag and add the chicken; seal and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Set aside the remaining marinade in the bowl.
- Make the Sauce: While the chicken is chilling in the marinade, heat the 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Sauté the garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes until fragrant. Add 2 cups of the hoisin marinade to the skillet and simmer, whisking constantly, until the mixture is dark brown and thickened. Remove from heat and cover to keep the sauce warm.
- Prepare the Coatings: Whisk the egg whites in a shallow dish until foamy; set aside. Combine the cornstarch, flour, baking soda, and remaining hoisin marinade in a second shallow dish; mix until it resembles coarse meal.
- Prepare the Chicken: Remove the chicken from the refrigerator and from the marinade. Pat the marinated chicken dry with paper towels. Toss half the chicken into the foamy egg whites until well coated, then dredge the chicken in the cornstarch mixture, pressing to adhere. Transfer the coated chicken to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken.
- Cook the Chicken: Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat until the oil registers 350 degrees. Fry half the chicken until golden brown, about 3 minutes, turning each piece halfway through cooking. Transfer the cooked chicken onto a paper towel lined plate to drain. Return the oil to 350 degrees before frying again. Repeat with the remaining chicken.
- Finish: Warm the sauce over medium heat until simmering. Turn off the heat and add the fried chicken pieces. Toss to coat and serve with sliced green onions to garnish, as well. White jasmine rice and steamed broccoli are favorite sides here!
Notes
This recipe was originally published on April 16, 2012.
