These fried bite-sized chicken pieces are crispy on the outside and juicy and tasty on the inside. They’re tossed into a garlic sauce that makes them heavenly…..
In one of my recent posts, I shared a vegetarian version of General Tso’s Takeout-inspired recipe with cauliflower. I decided to make General Tso’s Chicken for those of you who eat meat for this post. When I order takeout, this is my go-to dish because of the garlic sauce it comes in. After wondering how it was made, I decided to take it upon myself to learn how to make it and add my own spin to it.
Like me, have you ever ordered General Tso’s chicken and wondered how it’s made?
Ok, no more wondering; Heres how to make General Tso’s chicken:
The first step is to cut the chicken into small bite-sized pieces. I use boneless and skinless chicken breast, but if you want, you can use chicken thigh. Then, season the chicken pieces with your favorite seasoning. I like to season mine with mashed garlic (cause anything with garlic is good), salt, and pepper.
Then, proceed to make the batter.
In a big mixing bowl, combine the flour, corn starch baking powder, regular salt, and eggs. Add vegetable broth and whisk until all ingredients are well combined. The batter should be rich in texture. Proceed to add the smoked salt and combine.
Coat the chicken with the batter. After all the chicken pieces are coated with the batter, proceed to cover them with breadcrumbs to get an extra crispy outer texture.
Next, on a hot skillet with enough oil, fry the chicken pieces until golden brown.
As you fry the chicken bites, place them on a paper towel to absorb excess oil. Try to resist the temptation to eat them as they do taste delicious just like that. I’m guilty of this; I ate so many of them that I had to cut a few more pieces to continue making this recipe. They are so crunchy and moist, honestly outstanding!
Next, let’s make the sauce:
To make the sauce, all you need is ginger, garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce, and some sugar. It’s straightforward to change the sweetness label in the sauce. You can add or reduce the amount of sugar depending on your taste. You can also substitute white sugar with molasses or brown sugar.
How to make the General Tso’s Sauce:
Over medium-low in a small saucepan, heat the sesame oil. Add the garlic, ginger, and some cayenne pepper for extra heat (this is optional, I like mine spicy). Stir and continue adding the vegetable broth, sugar, tomato paste, and soy sauce. Continue cooking over medium-low heat.
In a small cup, dissolve the corn starch with 2 tablespoons of water. Next, whisk until a milky consistency is obtained. Reduce heat to low. Slightly pour the corn starch into the sauce and whisk continuously; continue cooking for about 10 minutes or until it thickens.
Now that the chicken and the sauce are ready let’s combine both.
Sprinkle some chives and sesame seeds
Serve over a bowl of fluffy white rice.
This recipe is perfect for a date night, a family gathering, or just a solo weekend.
Below you will find an easily printable recipe card. Please, feel free to leave any comments and/or suggestions. I would be delighted to hear from you all.
UNTIL THE NEXT ONE…
Enjoy!
TAKEOUT INSPIRED GENERAL TSO’S CHICKEN
Ingredients
- 2 average sized skinless chicken breast cut into bite-size pieces
- Enough oil to fry the chicken
Batter Ingredients:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup corn starch
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt regular
- 2 teaspoon smoked chili salt if not using this salt add two extra tsp of regular salt
- 4 eggs room temperature
- ½ vegetable broth you can substitute for chicken broth or just water
General Tso’s sauce Ingredients:
- 1 ½ tablespoon sesame oil
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tablespoon puree ginger or fresh knob grated
- ½ cup vegetable broth or chicken broth
- ½ cup soy sauce
- ½ cup rice vinegar
- ¼ cup sugar you can use brown sugar or molasses
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste you can use tomato sauce as well but increase the amount to 3 tbs
- 2 tablespoon corn starch dissolved with 2 tablespoons of water
Instructions
- The first step is to cut the chicken into small bite-sized pieces. I use boneless and skinless chicken breast but if you want you can use chicken thigh.
- Then, season the chicken pieces with your favorite seasoning. I like to season mine with mashed garlic, (cause anything with garlic is good), salt and pepper.
How to make the batter:
- In a big mixing bowl combine the flour, corn starch baking powder, regular salt, and eggs.
- Add vegetable broth and whisk until all ingredients are well combined. The batter should be rich in texture. Proceed to add the smoked salt and combine.
- Coat the chicken with the batter and then with breadcrumbs. Set aside until it’s time to fry them.
How to fry the chicken:
- First, heat the oil in a frying pan over high heat. Make sure the oil is hot before placing the chicken pieces
- Cook for about 2 to 3 minutes each side or until golden brown
- Remove from the oil and place the chicken bites on a paper towel to drain any excess oil. This will prevent them from becoming soggy. Set aside and prepare the sauce!
How to make the General Tso's sauce:
- Over medium-low in a small saucepan heat the sesame oil.
- Add the garlic, ginger and some cayenne pepper for extra heat (this is optional, I like mine spicy).
- Stir and continue adding the vegetable broth, sugar, tomato paste and soy sauce. Continue cooking over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes.
- In a small cup dissolve the corn starch with 2 tablespoons of water. Next, whisk until a milky consistency is obtained.
- Reduce heat to low. Slightly pour the corn starch into the sauce and whisk continuously, continue cooking for about 10 minutes or until it thickens.
Now for the most exciting part. How to pair these amazing fried chicken with the sauce:
- Remove the paper towel and coat the fried chicken pieces with the sauce. Toss them with the sauce until well coated. Garnish with some sesame seeds and some scallions. Serve over rice and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
*Nutritional Disclaimer: Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.
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