General Tso's Chicken

Ingredients

FOR THE CHICKEN:

3 teaspoon Toasted Sesame Oil

2 Tablespoon Soy Sauce

2 whole Large Egg White

1/2 cups Plus 4 Tablespoons Cornstarch

4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken breasts (cut into strips)

Canola, Peanut, Or Vegetable Oil For Frying

FOR THE SAUCE:

2 Tablespoon Peanut, Canola Or Vegetable Oil

4 cloves Garlic, Peeled And Minced

Whisk in a bowl:

4 Tablespoons Finely Chopped Fresh Ginger Root

2 cup Chicken Broth Or Stock

1/2 cups Soy Sauce

2 Tablespoon Cornstarch

2 teaspoon Chinese Chile-garlic Sauce

6 Tablespoons Raw (turbinado Or Demerara) Sugar

FOR SERVING:

Steamed Rice

Steamed Broccoli

Sesame seeds and green onion for garnish

Prep your chicken:

In a mixing bowl, stir together the sesame oil, soy sauce, egg white, and 1/2 cup plus 4 tablespoons of cornstarch until a thick slurry forms. It will look gummy but smooth.

Add the chicken pieces and stir until all are evenly coated. At first it may appear that it will not come together but it does!

Set chicken aside, covered lightly with plastic wrap, at room temperature for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Begin the sauce:

In a separate bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients until smooth. Everything except the ginger, garlic and oil.

Add the 2 tablespoons of oil to a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium/low heat. Stir the garlic and ginger into the oil and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant.
Remove the pan off the heat if needed, DO NOT LET IT OVERCOOK. Garlic gets extremely bitter if burnt so the sauce will ruin.

Just let the garlic smell fragrant (like the smell of cooked garlic bread!)

Pour the remaining whisked ingredients into the garlic and ginger, stirring, until the sauce becomes thick and shiny. Once the sauce thickens, lower heat and keep the saucepan over a low burner partially covered to stay warm.

**I added a splash of rice vinegar and I think it needed a squeeze of lime too. That's just me, but I recommend tasting it and adjusting to taste, gradually add the soy sauce too and taste so it's not too salty and the sugar amounts can be lessened too.

To fry the chicken:

Heat enough oil in a heavy-bottomed, high-sided frying pan or skillet over high heat for frying. Or use a deep fryer.

When the oil is shimmering, add one piece of chicken at a time, taking care not to crowd the pan. Cook chicken for 4 minutes on each side, or until deep golden brown and crisp on both sides**.

Fry the chicken until it's golden brown and cooked through.

Transfer the fried chicken to a paper towel lined plate and repeat the process until you’ve cooked all the chicken.

Then slide all of the fried chicken into the prepared sauce and toss to coat. (If desired, add some steamed broccoli to coat with the sauce also.) Increase the heat to medium, stir and cook just until hot all the way through.

Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve immediately over white rice.

If you're a chicken leg person try the original recipe here and another with detailed photos here