General Tao's Chicken (Piment Rouge)
Submitted by dollyt
General Tso’s chicken: crispy egg-white battered chicken stir-fried with ginger, garlic, scallions, and dried chilies in a sweet-tangy soy and vinegar sauce. The Hunan-style Chinese-American classic done right.
YIELD
4 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
25 minREADY
165 minGeneral Tso’s chicken (sometimes spelled Tao or Tsao) was named after the 19th-century Hunan general Zuo Zongtang, but the dish itself was actually invented in 1955 by chef Peng Chang-kuei in Taiwan, then popularized in 1970s New York. The home version here uses the classic technique that defines real General Tso’s: an egg-white-and-cornstarch marinade that creates the shatter-crisp coating Chinese-American restaurants are famous for.
The two-hour marinade is essential. The cornstarch-egg white slurry coats each chicken piece in a thin protective layer that fries up impossibly light and crispy.
No wet batter, no breadcrumbs. Just a marinade that becomes a crackly shell at 350°F (175°C).
The sauce comes together in seconds in a smoking wok: aromatic ginger, garlic, scallion, and dried chili peppers bloom in the oil, then a sweet-sour-salty mixture of sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, and cornstarch-thickened stock binds everything together. A drizzle of sesame oil at the very end (off the heat, never in it) adds the signature toasted nutty finish.
Pro Tips
- Use bone-in, skin-on chicken legs for the most flavorful result. The marinade tenderizes the dark meat beautifully.
- Test the oil temperature with a small piece of chicken first. It should sizzle immediately and crisp within 30 seconds.
- Have all sauce ingredients pre-measured before stir-frying. Once the wok is hot, things move in seconds.
- Serve immediately on a hot platter. The crispy coating softens within minutes of saucing.
Variations
- Add a tablespoon of toasted sesame seeds over the finished dish for added crunch and visual appeal.
- Stir in a half cup of broccoli florets in the last minute of stir-frying to make it a complete one-dish meal.
- Use boneless chicken thighs in place of legs for easier prep without sacrificing flavor.
Ingredients
Directions
For the best results use skinned deboned legs of capon.
Cut the chicken into pieces no larger than 1 inch square.
Prepare marinade by combining egg white, cornstarch and 1 tablespoon soy sauce in a large bowl.
Add chicken pieces and set aside for two hours. In a deep pot, heat the oil until it reaches 350℉ (180℃).
In a basket, or with a slotted spoon, lower several marinated chicken pieces into the fat.
Fry about one or two minutes or until the chicken becomes crisp; test for doneness before completing the batch.
Continue until all pieces have been fried.
Set oil and cooked chicken pieces aside.
In a wok, on high heat, reheat two tablespoons of the reserved oil.
Add prepared ginger, scallions, garlic and chili peppers.
Stir to prevent burning.
Add the fried chicken and stir quickly.
Add sugar, soy sauce, vinegar and cornstarch mixed with chicken stock.
Remove from the heat and stir sesame oil into the sauce.
Spoon the mixture on to a hot platter and serve immediately with steamed rice.
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