The Original General Tso’s Chicken … That You’ve Probably Never Had
This isn’t the sticky, sweet, thickly-coated American version. This is the Chinese version that you can’t find in the U.S. … or in China either.
The dish is named after a real general, Zuo Zongtang (1812–1885) from Hunan province. It was created in the early 1950s by Hunanese Chef Peng Chang-kuei.
If you go to China’s Hunan province you will not find the dish anywhere. Chef Peng fled to Taiwan when the communists won in 1949. General Zuo (transliterated to Tso) was a military hero from the same province, and Peng wanted to name a dish in his honor. So it was born in Taiwan and eventually made it to the U.S., but never to mainland China.
How It Was Born
By the third day of a state banquet, Peng had exhausted his repertoire of classic dishes and wanted to impress his guest of honor with something new. He knew Americans liked fried chicken, so he deboned a chicken thigh and fried it — but plain fried chicken was too familiar. So he coated the crispy chicken in a tangy sauce, added slivers of chili for heat, and named the dish after General Tso.
When Peng later brought the dish to his own New York restaurant in 1973, he arrived to find that other chefs who had visited his Taipei restaurant had beaten him there and had already sweetened and crisped his recipe into something unrecognizable. He served the original and was dismissed as the imitator.
Why You’ve Never Tasted the Real Thing
Peng told food scholar Fuchsia Dunlop that the dish he originally made was “typically Hunanese — sour, hot, and salty.” Quite different from our General Tso’s, whose sweetness is uniquely American. Here’s what sets the original apart:
– Much less sweet — savory and aromatic instead
– Aggressive heat from whole dried Facing Heaven chilies
– Ginger and garlic forward
– Spicy and sour with a thin sauce, not a thick glaze
– Dark meat chicken, no broccoli
The Original Real General Tso's Chicken
Equipment
- 1 Carbon Steel Wok
- 1 Wok Chuan also called a wok spatula
Ingredients
Chicken & Marinade
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
- 0.5 teaspoon white pepper
- 0.5 teaspoon kosher salt
Coating
- 1 to 1.5 cups cornstarch as needed for light dusting
Sauce
- 3 tablespoons chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1.5 tablespoons Chinkiang black vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Aromatics
- 12-20 heaven-facing dried chiles split
- 6 garlic cloves sliced
- 2 tablespoons ginger julienned
- 3 scallions cut into 2-inch pieces
Frying
- Neutral oil peanut or canola, for frying, 2.5-3 inches depth in the pot
Instructions
- Marinate the chicken: Combine the chicken with the egg, light soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, salt, and white pepper. Rest 20-30 minutes.
- Make the sauce: Mix all sauce ingredients together. Set aside.
- Coat the chicken: Lightly dust the chicken in cornstarch. Shake off excess — the coating should be thin, not heavy.
- Fry the chicken: Heat the oil to 350°F in a Dutch oven. First fry: 3-4 minutes until lightly golden and cooked through. Rest 2 minutes. Second fry: 45-60 seconds at 375°F until crisp. Drain well.
- In a wok or large skillet, heat 1-2 tablespoons of oil (or a spoon of the frying oil). Bloom the dried chiles until fragrant (do not burn).
- Add the ginger and stir briefly, stir and toss 15 seconds.
- Add the garlic and white parts of the scallions, stir and toss 15-30 seconds.
- Add the green parts of the scallions, stir and toss 10 seconds.
- Add the sauce and toss: Add the sauce and simmer 15-20 seconds. Add the chicken and toss quickly over high heat until lightly coated and glossy, not saucy.
- Serve immediately with plain steamed rice.
Notes
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