Jeremy Pang’s General Tso’s chicken

Name: Jeremy Pang’s General Tso’s chicken
Prep time: 40 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: Serves 2
Cuisine: Chinese recipes
Ingredients: 10 dried red chillies; 300g skinless, boneless chicken thighs, diced; 200g cornflour, seasoned with ¼ tsp salt and ¼ tsp pepper; ½ thumb-size piece ginger, finely sliced; 2 garlic cloves, finely sliced; 2 spring onions, finely sliced; Vegetable oil for deep-frying; For the sauce; 30g caster sugar; 1 tsp sriracha chilli sauce; 1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce; 1 tbsp oyster sauce; ½ tbsp black rice vinegar (see Easy Swaps and Know How); 1 tbsp light soy sauce; ½ tsp dark soy sauce; For the marinade; 1 tsp sesame oil; ½ tsp sugar; 1 tbsp light soy sauce; 1 medium free-range egg, lightly beaten; To serve; Sliced red chilli; Sliced spring onions; Steamed rice; Flash-fried green vegetables; You’ll also need; Digital thermometer

2 Reviews

Portion size: Serves 2
Hands-on time 40 min
Difficulty: easy

Dairy-free

Recipe by: Jeremy Pang

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Learn how to make General Tso’s chicken with expert chef Jeremy Pang. The popular wok-fried chicken dish is the perfect balance of sweet, sour, spicy, savoury and salty. You’re going to love it.

Recipe from Jeremy Pang’s School of Wok (Hamlyn £20). Photography by Kris Kirkham

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Ingredients

10 dried red chillies
300g skinless, boneless chicken thighs, diced
200g cornflour, seasoned with ¼ tsp salt and ¼ tsp pepper
½ thumb-size piece ginger, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
2 spring onions, finely sliced
Vegetable oil for deep-frying

For the sauce

30g caster sugar
1 tsp sriracha chilli sauce
1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
½ tbsp black rice vinegar (see Easy Swaps and Know How)
1 tbsp light soy sauce
½ tsp dark soy sauce

For the marinade

1 tsp sesame oil
½ tsp sugar
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 medium free-range egg, lightly beaten

To serve

Sliced red chilli
Sliced spring onions
Steamed rice
Flash-fried green vegetables

You’ll also need

Digital thermometer

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Method

Soak the dried red chillies in hot water for 10 minutes, then drain. Mix the sauce ingredients with 50ml water in a small bowl.
Put the chicken in a mixing bowl and massage the marinade ingredients into it. Tip in the cornflour and massage in until each piece of meat separates and has a dry white coating.
Build your Wok Clock*: start at 12 o’clock with your coated chicken, followed by the ginger, garlic, spring onions, the soaked chillies and lastly the sauce.
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Deep-fry the coated chicken in vegetable oil at 180°C for 4-5 minutes until golden brown. Transfer the chicken to a plate lined with kitchen paper.
If using your wok for deep-frying, carefully pour out the oil into a heatproof bowl to cool, then give your wok a quick wipe with kitchen paper. Put the wok back on the hob and bring 1 tbsp veg oil to a high heat. Add the ginger, garlic and spring onions and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
Next add the soaked chillies, followed by the sauce. Boil for 3-4 minutes until syrupy, then add the deep-fried meat, tossing the wok a few times to fully coat the chicken. Sprinkle with sliced red chilli and spring onions and serve immediately with steamed rice and flash-fried green veg.

Nutrition

801kcals Calories
31.4g (3.8g saturated) Fat
37.1g Protein
91.5g (23.1g sugars) Carbs
1.7g Fibre
3.5g Salt

Quick wins & tips

*”My Wok Clock is such a simple and practical tool – a way of reminding yourself to be super-organised in the kitchen,” says Jeremy. “Once you’ve prepared all your ingredients, arrange them around the plate in the order in which you’ll need them, beginning at 12 o’clock and working your way around the plate clockwise.”

EASY SWAPS You can use regular rice vinegar instead of black rice vinegar. You could use balsamic vinegar – but use half the amount specified in the recipe and make sure it’s not too sweet or syrupy.

For a more wallet-friendly dish, swap the chicken for deep-fried tofu. To make the tofu dish vegetarian, you’ll need to omit the oyster sauce.