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General Tso's Chicken

Source of Recipe

From "See You on Sunday" by Sam Sifton


Recipe Introduction

"For a long time, I felt I could eat General Tso's chicken daily, bad-great food purchased from storefronts on the edge of town with bulletproof glass over the counter, alongside pork fried rice and an eggroll. My brother Toby had a better idea, though. He has, over the years, worked out an adaptation of Fuschia Dunlop's recipe for General Tso's chicken in her Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook, a recipe that is far more pungent than the purely American take-out variety, with a salty-fiery flavor that is nothing less than addictive. He makes it with staples from his local health-food store—liquid aminos instead of soy sauce and barley instead of potato flour—but these substitutions are by no means necessary. The dish is, at any rate, now fully part of our family dinner repertoire: takeout made better, and just as cheaply."

List of Ingredients

For the sauce:
â—¦ 2 tablespoons tomato paste, mixed with 1 tablespoon water
â—¦ 1 teaspoon barley flour, potato flour, or cornstarch
â—¦ 4 tablespoons Bragg liquid aminos or low-sodium soy sauce
â—¦ 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
â—¦ ½ cup chicken stock, homemade or low-sodium, or water

For the chicken:
â—¦ 8 to 10 chicken thighs, bones removed
â—¦ 2 tablespoons Bragg liquid aminos or low-sodium soy sauce
â—¦ 2 large egg yolks
â—¦ 4 tablespoons barley flour or potato flour, or 1 tablespoon cornstarch
â—¦ 3 ½ cups plus 3 tablespoons and an extra splash peanut oil
â—¦ 10 to 15 dried red chiles
â—¦ 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
â—¦ 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
â—¦ 1 tablespoon sesame oil
â—¦ 4 scallions, green parts only, thinly sliced


Recipe

Make the sauce. Mix the tomato paste, barley flour, liquid aminos, vinegar, and stock in a small bowl, whisking to combine. Set aside.

Prepare the chicken. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Lay the thighs on a cutting board and, using a small knife, remove the skin. Slice shallow crosshatches into the meat, then cut each thigh into thin strips, about ¼ inch thick. Put the chicken in a bowl and add the liquid aminos and egg yolks and stir to combine. Stir in the barley flour, along with a splash of peanut oil, and set aside.

Using scissors, cut the chiles into pieces, discarding the seeds. Set aside.

Pour 3 ½ cups of the peanut oil into a large wok, or enough oil to rise 1 ½ inches from the bottom of a heavy sauté pan. Set over high heat until the oil is nearly smoking, 350° to 400° F. Add about a quarter of the chicken and fry until crisp and brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a plate. Repeat with the rest of the chicken, frying in batches. Pour the oil into a heatproof container and wipe the wok clean.

Return the wok to high heat. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons peanut oil. When the oil is hot, add the chiles and stir-fry for just a few seconds, until they begin to color. Add the ginger and garlic and stir-fry for a few seconds, until fragrant. Add the sauce and stir as it thickens. Return the chicken to the wok and stir again to coat. Remove from the heat, stir in the sesame oil, and top with the scallions. Serve with rice.