Just about everyone has tried General Tso’s Chicken—deep-fried chicken pieces in a sweet, subtly spicy sauce with crunchy broccoli. We’ve perfected ours after many years in Chinese restaurant kitchens.
What’s the Story Behind General Tso’s Chicken?
General Tso’s Chicken was supposedly named after Zuo Zongtang, a military leader from Hunan province during the Qing Dynasty. Some say this dish was invented and named by the Taiwanese chef, Peng Chang Kuei, who cooked for Chiang Kai Shek. General Tso’s Chicken is so beloved but so confusingly Chinese-American that they even made a documentary about it!
But the enigma of its actual origins are overshadowed by the fact that the General Tso’s Chicken out there often doesn’t do the general any justice! With sugary, gloopy sauce and batter-coated sponges with no crunch that may or may not contain actual poultry, many Chinese restaurants go too heavy on the egg, cornstarch, and flour filler!
What’s The Woks of Life’s Stance On It?
The infamous General Tso’s Chicken is usually the first dish that comes to mind when we try to explain the difference between authentic Chinese food and the Americanized version of Chinese food that most people in U.S. have come to know. Indeed, very few people in China have even heard of General Tso’s Chicken, let alone tried it.
Buuut…
We’re not gonna lie, a couple of us here at the Woks of Life still get wicked cravings for General Tso’s Chicken. Those crispy, sauce-covered chunks of chicken, the crunchy bright green broccoli, and the balance of a sweet tangy sauce dotted with a few dried chili peppers for the perfect heat. It’s hard to resist.
All too often, though, it just ain’t done right!
So it wasn’t long before we took matters back into our own hands, brushing off the family recipe from my parents’ days running a Chinese restaurant. Take this as a peace offering to everyone out there who secretly–or not so secretly–loves this “Chinese” General Tso’s Chicken.
Our General Tso’s Chicken Recipe
Our restaurant version—the way my father cooked it in his days as a professional chef in New York—has a more intensely flavored, tangy sauce with large chunks of crisp, juicy chicken, and lots of fresh crunchy broccoli. as opposed to the usually one-note, sugary sweet neon orange hunks of fried flour that many takeout joints churn out.
When done right, it can be crazy delicious! Even Judy, who usually doesn’t go for this kind of Chinese takeout begrudgingly admitted that this was very tasty.
If you have tried other recipes online, you’ll find our General Tso’s Chicken recipe is an authentic version of the restaurant classic, straight from my father/Sarah and Kaitlin’s grandfather, a seasoned takeout chef. And I have to say it early on because I know we’ll get some questions: deep frying is the way to go for General Tso’s Chicken! Anything else like baking or pan frying just won’t be the same! But feel free to make adjustments to suit your tastes and diet. (Just invite some friends over and share the wealth!)
Try this General Tso’s Chicken once. Your local #1 Hunan Garden will wonder if you skipped town!
Note: This recipe was originally published in November 2013. We have since re-tested, re-photographed, and updated the recipe with new and improved instructions! If you’d like a copy of the old recipe, contact us!
Recipe Instructions
Prepare the chicken:
Marinate the chicken pieces in a bowl with the Shaoxing wine, water, salt, white pepper, and sesame oil. Mix until the chicken absorbs all the liquid. Next, add the toasted sesame seeds, all-purpose flour and cornstarch. Stir to coat, and set aside.
You can buy boneless chicken thighs or for a more economical choice, see our post on How to debone skin-on chicken thighs and use the bones to make your own chicken stock.
Now, for those of you who like your General Tso’s Chicken made in a truly classic takeout fashion—heavy on the coating, minimal on the actual chicken—you can add an egg and double the flour and cornstarch at this step. If you go this route, be sure to extend frying times to ensure the coating and the chicken are fully cooked through. We know some folks like to bite into extra chewy fried dough coating—or maybe have gotten used to it!
Prepare the General Tso Sauce:
Mix together the low-sodium chicken stock, dark soy sauce, regular soy sauce, brown sugar and rice wine vinegar in a bowl or measuring cup. Set aside.
Blanch the broccoli:
In a wok or pot, boil 6 cups water, and blanch the broccoli for 30 seconds to a minute, depending on whether you like your broccoli soft or crunchy.
Drain in a colander and set aside. To keep it super green, you can also transfer them to an ice bath, and then drain and set aside.
Fry the chicken & assemble the dish:
Heat the frying oil in a small but deep pot to 335F/170C. Carefully drop the chicken pieces into the oil in small batches. Make sure the chicken is thoroughly coated with the batter/sesame seeds on all sides before frying.
The chicken should float at the top of the oil. Fry until light golden brown (about 5 minutes) and transfer to a wire rack or plate lined with paper towels to drain.
Be sure to manage the oil temperature using a thermometer, as it will drop every time you add raw chicken. Continue frying in batches. Once all of the chicken has been fried once, fry the chicken a second time for 3 to 5 minutes until super crispy. Be careful not to burn it!
Here are some extra tips for frying the chicken:
- The chicken will become somewhat soft after the first round of frying. Frying a second time makes the chicken nice and crispy, just like the restaurants serve! Again, deep frying is preferable.
- Select a small pot to use for frying, but make sure the oil does not fill the pot more than halfway (so the oil does not spill over during frying). To conserve oil, you can fry in more batches with as little as 2 inches of oil in a smaller pot.
- Be extra careful when you drop the chicken into the hot oil. Do it slowly so it does not splash.
- Try to place the chicken pieces into the hot oil one at a time and not too close together, so they don’t stick.
Ok, back to the rest of the recipe:
Heat a clean wok over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil along with the dried chilies.
Cook the chili peppers for about 5 seconds. Add the minced garlic and Shaoxing wine.
Next, add the General Tso’s Chicken sauce you prepared earlier.
Bring the sauce to a simmer, and stir in the cornstarch slurry until it thickens to a glossy sauce. Add the chicken and broccoli, and toss until everything is coated in the sauce.
Plate and serve immediately with steamed rice!
Looking for more recipes?
Here’s a handful of some of our other best-loved Chinese restaurant chicken dishes!
General Tso's Chicken
Ingredients
FOR THE CHICKEN:
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs (450g, cut into 1-inch pieces)
- 1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
FOR THE GENERAL TSO SAUCE:
- 1/3 cup low sodium chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce (or seasoned soy sauce)
- 3 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
TO COMPLETE THE DISH:
- 3 cups broccoli florets (about 8 ounces/225g)
- 4 cups peanut oil (for frying, plus 1 tablespoon; can substitute canola or vegetable oil)
- 5-6 dried red chili peppers
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 teaspoons Shaoxing wine
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch (mixed into a slurry with 2 tablespoons water)
Instructions
- Marinate the chicken pieces in a bowl with the Shaoxing wine, water, salt, white pepper, and sesame oil. Mix until the chicken absorbs all the liquid. Next, add the toasted sesame seeds, all-purpose flour and cornstarch. Stir to coat, and set aside.
- Make the sauce mixture by combining the low-sodium chicken stock, dark soy sauce, regular soy sauce, brown sugar and rice wine vinegar in a bowl or measuring cup. Set aside.
- In a wok or pot, boil 6 cups water, and blanch the broccoli for 30 seconds to a minute, depending on whether you like your broccoli soft or crunchy. Drain in a colander and set aside. To keep it super green, you can also transfer them to an ice bath, and then drain and set aside.
- Heat the frying oil in a small but deep pot to 335 degrees F/170 degrees C. Carefully drop the chicken pieces into the oil in small batches. Make sure the batter/sesame seeds have really coated all sides of the chicken before frying. The chicken should float at the top of the oil. Fry until light golden brown (about 5 minutes) and transfer to a wire rack or plate lined with paper towels to drain.
- Be sure to manage the oil temperature using a thermometer, as it will drop every time you add raw chicken. Continue frying in batches. Once all of the chicken has been fried once, fry the chicken a second time for 3 to 5 minutes until super crispy. Be careful not to burn it!
- Heat a clean wok over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil along with the dried chilies. Cook the chili peppers for about 5 seconds. Add the minced garlic and Shaoxing wine.
- Next, add the General Tso’s Chicken sauce you prepared earlier. Bring the sauce to a simmer, and stir in the cornstarch slurry until it thickens to a glossy sauce. Add the chicken and broccoli, and toss until everything is coated in the sauce. Plate and serve immediately with steamed rice!
