General Tso’s Chicken {Foodie Friday}
Written by Sarah of East9thStreet.

This weekend my step-son is visiting from Tulsa.  He’s a typical teenage boy and typically eats burgers and fries.  Recently he’s become a huge fan of Asian food so we decided this would be the perfect weekend to try out some new recipes.

Browsing some of the foodie blogs, I came across a recipe from Far Away.  Having the majority of the ingredients on hand, I decided it was time to attempt General Tso’s Chicken.

This version of General Tso’s Chicken is sure to challenge even your favorite take-out restaurants versions.  The ingredients merry well together and there is just the right amount of heat.  My only deviation from this recipe was not using the dry, white sherry to marinate the chicken.  Instead I used rice wine vinegar only because I couldn’t find white sherry.  I hope you enjoy this and it becomes a regular in your dinner rotation.

General Tso’s Chicken

Ingredients

• ¼ cup chicken stock
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp hoison sauce
• 2 tsp Sriracha sauce (I’m not a huge fan of spicy and I could have easily added another tsp)
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 1/3 cup + 2 tsp cornstarch, divided
• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut in 1-in pieces
• 2 tbsp dry white sherry (or substitute rice wine vinegar like I did)
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
• 6 dried red chilis
• 3 green onions, white and green parts cut into ½” pieces

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, combine all the ingredients up to the cornstarch.  Add the 2 tsp of cornstarch and whisk until well blended.
2. In a large bowl, marinate your chicken for 15 minutes in the dry white sherry or rice wine vinegar.  Add a sprinkle of salt.
3. This step is important.  Because you want your cornstarch mixture to be a dry coating on the chicken, put the chicken in a colander and drain any excess liquid.
4. Using the 1/3 cup of cornstarch (use more if your chicken seems wet), coat the chicken.  In a large skillet, warm the peanut oil over medium heat (my oil wasn’t very deep, just enough to cover the surface of the pan) and once hot, add chicken and brown the chicken on all sides.  Once the chicken is done, remove it from the pan and set aside.
5. Drain any leftover oil out of the skillet and add garlic and ginger, cooking for 20 seconds or so.  Add chilis, chicken and green onions, mix gently.  Add the sauce mixture and stir frequently until the sauce thickens and coats the chicken.  Because of the cornstarch in your sauce mixture, this happens fairly quickly so watch your food!
6. Top with sliced green onions and serve over a bed of rice.

 

When not chasing toddlers, planning playdates or studying to be the most awesome healthcare administrator in the world, Sarah runs the family blog, East9thStreet.  There you’ll find amazing recipes, tips and tricks on surviving parenthood and an occasional random rant.