General Tso's Chicken

Sometimes it's just one of those days when you want to order Chinese take out, curl up in a blanket and watch some classic movies. I couldn't bring the movies or blankets to work but I sure am able to supply the food! We've done several Korean-Chinese dishes such as Tangsuyuk and Jja Jang Myun, but this time I was going to go another route and make General Tso's Chicken, a dish that I've never actually had before. Like many Chinese dishes, it's fried in all its glory, covered in sauce and served with rice...just what I was looking for.

General Tso's Chicken

Recipe from appetiteforchina.com

Cooking time: 45 minutes

Yield: 4 servings as a multi-course meal, 2-3 as the main entree

Ingredients

Marinade

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry sherry

2 egg whites

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, sliced into 1-inch cubes

Sauce

1/4 cup chicken stock or substitute water

1 1/2 tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tsp hoisin sauce

1 tsp chili paste

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp cornstarch

1 1/2 cups cornstarch

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

3 cups peanut or vegetable oil for frying, plus 1 tbsp for stir-frying

8 dried whole red chilis, or substitute 1/4 tsp dried red chili flakes

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp white sesame seeds, for garnish

scallions, green part thinly sliced, for garnish

Directions

1. Marinade the chicken by combining the soy sauce, rice wine, and egg whites. Add the chicken and marinade for 10 minutes, stirring to coat.
2. Meanwhile, make the sauce by combining the chicken stock-cornstarch. Whisk together until the sugar and cornstarch is dissolved. Set aside. 
3. Preheat your fryer or 3 cups of oil to 350 degrees F.
4. While your oil is heating, mix together the 1 1/2 cups cornstarch with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in the cornstarch mixture, shaking off the excess. Working in batches, add the first batch of the marinated chicken to the fryer. Fry until golden brown and no longer pink inside. Remove the chicken and drain on paper towels. Repeat with the remaining chicken.
5. Heat a wok to medium-high heat and add 1 tbsp of vegetable oil. Add the whole chilies and minced garlic and saute for 15 seconds. Add the chicken to the wok along with the sauce. Stir to coat. When the chicken is well coated and the sauce is thickened, remove the chicken and transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with white sesame seeds and scallions. Serve with white rice and vegetables. 

Nutritional Analysis:
per serving (for main dish): 483 calories, 13.5g fat (3.2 saturated, 3.8g polyunsaturated, 4.8g monounsaturated), 51.0g carbohydrates, 1.3g fiber, 35.3g protein.

**Helpful tips and common mistakes

As most of you know, chicken thigh is fattier than chicken breast, so make sure to trim all if not most of the fat. I actually tried this recipe with chicken thigh and chicken breast and no one was able to tell the difference. Mix together the marinade first and than add to the chicken.

Now I don't own a wok, but I do have a fryer! I set the temperature to 350 and fried until golden brown. If you don't have a fryer or an oil thermometer, there is another way to test if your oil is ready. Simply stick a wooden chopstick or skewer into the oil and if bubbles form, your oil is ready. Another way to test the temperature is to drop a bit of the batter to see if the oil sizzles. 

I had to cook 20 pounds of chicken today, so I had to make small batches of the cornstarch mixture. If you were to do the correct amount for 20 pounds, that would be 30 cups of cornstarch! Eventually the marinade from the chicken wets the cornstarch, making it clumpy and unusable. It doesn't adhere to the chicken as well so rather than having a large waste, make a smaller batch of cornstarch and throw it out when it gets to the clumpy stage. 

Fried chicken galore! Even without the sauce, the seasoning is perfect on this chicken.

The sauce itself thickens rather quickly. You can prepare it ahead and reheat later when serving.

If you would rather have your chicken extra crispy, you can serve the chicken on the side of the sauce. Serve it up family style with some rice (brown rice is the healthier choice especially since your chicken is fried) and some vegetables! I made a simple vegetable medley with bok choy, mushrooms, and eggplant sauteed with a hoisin, oyster sauce, and soy sauce mixture. Enjoy!