General Tso’s Chicken is a favorite Chinese food takeout choice that is sweet and slightly spicy with a kick from garlic and ginger.
General Tso’s Chicken was one of my favorite college days late night Chinese food delivery orders. The spicier, zestier less popular cousin to the ever popular Orange Chicken, General Tso’s Chicken is a fantastic option when you’re looking to change up your Chinese food routine.
General Tso’s Chicken can sometimes have recipes that are really complicated and with many different breading steps. I eliminated them going to a simple cornstarch coating, but you can definitely do a thicker typical breading if you would like, like I did in my Orange Chicken recipe. Also, the addition of the hoisin sauce may seem small and you may want to skip it because it isn’t a normal pantry item unless you are used to doing Asian cooking, but the flavor is that specific General Tso’s Chicken flavor that you’ll miss without it.
Looking for some other Chinese food takeout options for dinner? Well aside from the long list of Panda Express menu items on the site, here is a list of delicious meals waiting to be made!
- CPK Kung Pao Chicken Spaghetti
- CPK Thai Chicken Peanut Pasta
- Classic Chow Mein
- Crab Rangoon Pizza with Sweet and Sour Drizzle
- Light Crispy Chinese Chicken Salad
- Korean Ground Beef Egg Rolls
- Garlic Hunan Beef
- Spicy Tangerine Beef with Carrot Ribbons
- PF Chang’s Orange Peel Chicken
Some quick notes about the ingredients in the recipe:
- It can be tempting to swap out items, like white wine vinegar for rice vinegar. Every time you make a substitution it is going to taste less like what you remember ordering out. Rice vinegar is a pretty inexpensive vinegar in the grocery store and an amazing flavor boost for salads as well as many Asian recipes. You won’t regret the purchase.
- Hoisin sauce is one of my favorite (and I really mean favorite) Asian pantry item. It has an awesome depth of flavor and is sometimes referred to as Asian BBQ sauce. You’ll immediately recognize the flavor when you try it and the one bottle will make many delicious dishes. Don’t skip it.
- Sesame seeds, you may see me using them as a garnish on a lot of my Asian dishes, this is because presentation counts. I know you probably think “oh man I’m just tired and ready to eat the second I am done cooking” but believe me when I tell you that a little sprinkling of sesame seeds, chopped chives or even red chili pepper will instantly add flair to your meal.
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken thighs cut into 1 inch chunks
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- oil for frying
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- For the Sauce:
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons hoisin sauce
- 1/4 cup water
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Toss the chicken thighs with the quarter cup of cornstarch and let sit while you mix the sauce ingredients.
- Add the rice vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, water, sugar and tablespoon of cornstarch in a small bowl and whisk together.
- Add the chicken to a pan with the oil and fry until crispy.
- Remove chicken from the pan and drain all but a tablespoon of the oil and add the chili flakes, ginger and garlic.
- Cook until you smell the garlic (about 30 seconds).
- Add in the chicken and toss, then add in the sauce.
- Stir for about 30 seconds until thickened.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Nutrition
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This was so perfect and easy.Did exactly as said but Also added an onion,green pepper and red pepper chopped as that is how we get it here.my only fault was not frying the chicken long enough to get it crispy but the sauce and taste were just as we know it from the Chinese restaurant .Will be making this many more times.
Followed the recipe exactly. It was excellent. The crazy part was, even my extremely picky 6-year-old loved it. The only thing I wish I didn’t have to look up is how long it typically takes to fry chicken thighs. It might be worth giving an approximate. This is going in the recipe book thank you!!!!
High praise indeed from a 6 year old.
This is a fantastic recipe! We haven’t gone out for Chinese food ever since I found it. Our favorite.
This is a go-to for me and my honey. We prefer this over any restaurant dish! It is absolutely DELICIOUS!
Can you use already prepared chicken nuggets that are frozen and just add the sauce to them after heating?
Sure, just make sure you give the sauce enough time to thicken.
You might also try the 3 ingredient Orange Chicken Recipe. https://dinnerthendessert.com/3-ingredient-orange-chicken-orange-marmalade-bbq/
We really enjoyed this. Added a bunch of stir fry vegetables and used a sugar substitute – it was really good. Thanks for an easy and tasty recipe that I will definitely make again.
Hoping to see a Youtube video on this soon! Love this recipe!
This is okay. It’s definitely not general TSO.
I wish the recipe had how high to cook the chicken or mixing the sauce. The recipe was too simple, to the point it left out things that a beginner wouldn’t know.
A must try … easy and delicious!
A must try … easy and delicious!
I want to try this
Easy and delicious
Really want to try this tonight. Love your recipes. Wondering if I can air fry the chicken then add it to the sauce? Husband doesn’t seem to do well with fried foods anymore. Thank you
Do whatever is best for your family! Hope you enjoy!
It was great. We used pork instead and it was very good.
This recipe forgot to mention cooking the sauce. I’m glad I knew to do that. The hoisin sauce was a bit strong and dark. I’ll use less next time. Other than that it was edible.