An easy General Tso’s chicken recipe that yields crispy chicken without deep-frying. It also uses much less sugar while maintaining a great bold taste. Once you’ve tried it, you’ll skip takeout next time because it’s so easy to make in your own kitchen and the result is just as good. {Gluten-Free Adaptable}
Today I want to share my interpretation of General Tso’s Chicken that yields a great taste like the restaurant version, but is more practical for any cook to make in their home kitchen. The best things about this recipe are:
- You will use much less oil to cook the chicken. No deep-frying required. The chicken will end up super crispy and stay that way, even after it’s been tossed in the sauce.
- The tangy sauce is well balanced, rich, and sticky. It also uses less sugar than the mainstream recipes out there.
- No wok required! You can use a regular skillet to make this dish taste great.
Ingredients
What cut of chicken to use
I always prefer to use chicken thighs for General Tso’s chicken, because it yields a very juicy result without worrying about overcooking. Although you can use chicken breast and create awesome results, as well.
Just remember to cut the chicken into 1” to 1 1/4” (2.5 to 3 cm) pieces. The size of the chicken pieces matters because you want the surface to turn crispy with the inside just cooked through at the same time.
The best vinegar to use
Many General Tso’s chicken recipes call for rice vinegar. But if you really want the rich tangy taste like the restaurant version, you should use Chinkiang vinegar instead.
Chinkiang vinegar (Zhenjiang vinegar, 镇江香醋) is a type of Chinese black vinegar. It is made from various grains and is aged until the color turns dark brown or inky black. It has a rich, pungent, and tart flavor, sometimes with a hint of sweetness. It has a fermented malty taste and a woody character that distinguish it from the light-colored and fruity rice vinegar.
These days it’s quite easy to find it in an Asian market and even at regular grocery stores. You can also shop for it on Amazon.
Mise en place
When you’re ready to cook, your table should have:
- Chopped aromatics (ginger, garlic)
- Marinated chicken coated with cornstarch
- Mixed sauce
- Dried chili pepper
How to cook General Tso’s Chicken
To cook General Tso’s chicken, you need to:
- Spread out the chicken pieces in a hot pan
- Pan fry the chicken until golden brown
- Transfer the cooked chicken onto a plate and let it cool off a bit
- Saute the aromatics
- Pour in the sauce
- Once the sauce thickens, add the chicken back and toss everything together.
Note, it’s very important to remove the chicken from the pan. Letting the chicken cool off a bit before adding it back into the skillet is a crucial step for keeping the coating crispy. Plus, your pan will become very hot after you fry the chicken. I usually remove the pan from the heat for a few seconds before adding the aromatics, so it won’t burn the ingredients.
How to make crispy chicken without deep frying
Here is the trick to creating crispy chicken with a crunchy coating that is like the takeout you’d get from Chinese restaurants, without making a mess.
Simply use the formula: oil + salt + egg + cornstarch
This combination creates a dry batter that is suitable for pan-frying. Normally, deep frying requires at least a few cups of oil. For this recipe, you only need a regular skillet and 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup of oil to pan-fry the chicken. Not only does it yield an extra crispy exterior and juicy, flavorful meat, but the chicken also stays crispy even after you coat it with sauce.
Perfect party food
This General Tso’s chicken makes a great party food. The batter holds up really well and the chicken will remain crispy even if you let the dish sit for a while after cooking. If you’re hosting a dinner party and have multiple stir-fried dishes, you can make this one in advance and keep it in the oven on low heat until you’re ready to serve it.
This dish is so addictive that I can finish one pound of chicken in one sitting. I highly doubt you’ll have any leftovers when you cook it. But just in case you do need to reheat the dish, here is a good way. You can preheat your oven to 350 F and spread the chicken onto a baking dish. Once the chicken is heated through, it will be pretty crispy again.
More Chinese takeout recipes
- Kung Pao Shrimp (宫爆虾球)
- Beef with Oyster Sauce (蚝油牛肉)
- Chinese Lemon Chicken
- Crispy Peanut Butter Chicken
- Easy Egg Foo Young
- Salt and Pepper Chicken
General Tso’s Chicken (Crispy Chicken Without Deep-Frying)
Ingredients
- 1 lb(450 g) boneless skinless chicken thighs , cut into 1-inch (2-cm) pieces (or breasts)
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil (or vegetable oil)
- 1 egg , beaten
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
Sauce (or pre-made General Tso’s Sauce)
- 1/3 cup chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
- 2 tablespoons Chinkiang vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce (or soy sauce)
- 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce (or soy sauce)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Stir fry
- 3 tablespoons peanut oil (or vegetable oil)
- 7 to 8 dried Chinese chili peppers (*Footnote)
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 4 cloves garlic , minced
Instructions
- Mix all the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl and set it aside.
- Combine the chicken pieces, vegetable oil, and salt in a big bowl. Mix well and let it marinate for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Add the beaten egg into the bowl with the chicken. Stir to mix well. Add the cornstarch. Stir to coat the chicken until it forms an uneven coating with a little dry cornstarch left unattached.
- Heat the stir-fry oil in a heavy-duty skillet until hot, until it just starts to smoke. Add the chicken all at once and spread it out into a single layer in the skillet. Separate the chicken pieces with a pair of tongs or chopsticks.
- Cook without touching the chicken for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the bottom turns golden. Flip to brown the other side, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a big plate and remove the pan from the stove. Let cool for 2 to 3 minutes.
- Place the pan back onto the stove and turn to medium heat. You should still have 1 to 2 tablespoons of oil in the pan. Add the dried chili pepper, garlic, and ginger. Cook and stir a few times until it releases its fragrance.
- Stir the sauce again to dissolve the cornstarch completely. Pour it into the pan. Stir and cook until it thickens, when you can draw a line on the bottom with a spatula without the sauce running back immediately.
- Add back the chicken pieces. Stir to coat the chicken with sauce, 30 seconds. Transfer everything to a plate immediately. Serve hot as a main dish.
Notes
- You can use dried Chinese or Korean chili peppers in the dish. They add aroma to the sauce but don’t really add spiciness. If you want the sauce to be spicy, you should cut the peppers in half to release the seeds. Or you can add a small pinch of cayenne pepper to the sauce mixture.
Looks amazing and I will try it!
This was wonderful! My husband has been craving this and it fit the bill! Also, our two boys ate it for the first time and loved it! Thanks! Didn’t change one thing to the recipe. Will be making again. All three of them said we should have this again! Thanks!
Due to reasons what can I substitute the shaoshing wine for so I don’t lose the effect of the recipe ? Thank you
The best alternative is dry sherry, but if you have Japanese sake it will work beautifully too. If you do not want to use alcohol, you can use chicken stock to replace it.
Outstanding recipe! Husband loved it. Such great flavor.
I’m very much looking forward to trying your General Tso’s Chicken, but one thing confuses me. Every photo looks to me as if the dish contains sesame seeds, but there are none in the recipe. Am I missing something or is the recipe missing something?
Sorry about the confusion! I used some sesame seeds for garnish but it’s not a must-have ingredient for the dish. You can either use it or skip it.
So delicious! I love the very clever and effective method of cooking the chicken so that it somehow remains at least as crispy as deep fried. Genius!
I had to make these subs: rice vinegar instead of chinkiang; dry sherry instead of shaoxing wine; reg soy + a glug (maybe TBS) of molasses instead of dark soy. I’m guessing I would’ve had a darker sauce like yours with the called-for ingredients, but the lighter color didn’t affect the flavor. Heavenly!
I used 1.5 lbs b/s chicken thighs and stir-fried a plateful of veggies (bell pepper, onions, celery, mushrooms, water chestnuts). Because I had extra meat and the veggies, I made 2 times the sauce. I think I could actually have used 3x since it left us wanting a bit more sauce for the rice. Next time I’ll adjust.
Thank you so very much for sharing your method and recipe. It was out of this world fantastic! Can’t wait to try more!
Hi Maggie. This time I tried your General Tso without frying. Since my wife has problems with garlic, I used lots of ginger and for Chinkiang vinegar*, which I don’t have, substituted with Balsamic vinegar + 2 tsp of soy sauce. Also, since she does not like broccoli (but does well with gai lan), I used the bok choi from my garden (lots and lots). Dish came out really good. Thanks again.**
* there are several “Asian” markets near me, but nothing like 99 Ranch -there were TWO near my former home,
so I am quite spoiled. You do know about 99 Ranch?
Hi Frank, glad to hear you like this recipe!
I love 99 Ranch. When I lived in Austin and the H Mart hasn’t opened, we used to drive to Houston to shop at 99 Ranch. It’s very good!
Excellent recipe. My husband and kids loved it! Very easy to make, especially when prep work is done. I am looking forward to trying your other recipes.
Another really great recipe. I doubled it and stirred some Thai basil into the sauce after it had cooled a bit. I was concerned that the sauce might be a bit overpowering for one of my family members, so rather than coat the chicken with the sauce at the end, I put the sauce on a serving platter and put layer of Thai basil on top of that, then added the chicken on top and drizzled a little reserved sauce on the chicken. Sprinkled diced scallions and sesame seeds on top.
We had a little leftover and my son requested it for breakfast the next morning. I reheated the chicken in a skillet and fried an egg on top. He loved it!
Thanks again Maggie!
Hi Quinn, so happy to hear you like the recipe and thanks for the thorough review! Thai basil sounds so delicious and so does the fried egg chicken bowl 🙂 Can’t wait to hear what you’ll be cooking the next!
This was delicious, but not at all crunchy for me. I don’t know what I did wrong, as I followed the directions exactly. It was really tasty, though, so I plan to try it again this week using egg white only and potato starch, frying the chicken in an inch or two of oil, then cooling the meat before frying again. Then moving the food to a wok and continuing with the stir fry. I’ve had good success with a double deep fry, egg white only and potato starch in the past. Do you have any insights as to what went wrong? I cooked 3 minutes each side and did pull the meat and cool the pan for 3 minutes before continuing to the stir fry. The sauce was rich and definitely a keeper for me.
So easy and delicious! Sweet, tangy and savory! Cooked in a 12″ Lodge cast iron skillet. Garnished with jalapeños (not very Chinese!) and scallions. I don’t have dark soy sauce or Chinkiang vinegar (yet) so I used rice wine vinegar and a tsp of Kitchen Bouquet to darken the chicken a bit. I am glad you suggested letting the skillet cool for 3 minutes before adding the sauce!
My 13 and 15 y/o sons are fans of this recipe!
I made this last night and it was phenomenal! The only thing I did differently is I added a pound of asparagus chopped and some additional hot red peppers. How delicious. Thank you for posting this!
This was amazing- your recipes are a fantastic lift to this Covid situation and give me the joy of travelling through a multitude of amazing flavours. It is so generous to share your lovely recipes and very appreciated (as I’ve had Chinkiang vinegar in my cupboard for so long and now have a great recipe to use it in!) thank you so much xx
We loved this! Thought I would have leftovers but my son and I ate it all. Lessons learned – next time I will brown the chicken to a darker color than I did to make sure it is crispy. And, will make more!
Making this dish satisfied my desire to try to make “take out” chinese food at home, which I had never done before. THANK YOU for demystifying it for me and offering such a great recipe. I live rurally, and chinese takeout is not an option on the day to day. It’s awesome to know I can make it whenever now! The chicken was wonderful and crispy.
I used rice vinegar, cooking sherry, tamari, regular soy sauce, chili flakes and coconut sugar in place of the ingredients you recommended as primary options, and it still tasted fantastic! One day I’ll make it true to recipe :). I also added broccoli, bell pepper and green onion, which I cooked while I kept the fried chicken warm in the oven, and then added back to the thickened sauce at the end.
So happy to hear you like the dish and thanks for sharing your tips! Love the idea of keeping the chicken warm in the oven while preparing other veggies. Sounds like a healthy and delicious dinner 🙂
This recipe is outstanding! I have never had this meal before but it was quite tasty. My husband is a meat and potatoes guy and he loved it. This is my daughter’s favorite restaurant dish and she loved this home made version. To please all three of us is quite a feat! I don’t eat fried foods, so thank you for a healthier alternative and a delicious recipe! I did make two changes. I didn’t have chili peppers so I used a jalapeno instead and I used store bought sauce. Thanks so much!
I think I’ve made this recipe at least a dozen times and it never fails to disappoint. I play with it sometimes and throw in peppers or broccoli. Served over jasmine rice it’s always a winner.
Another hit! Love all your recipes. This one is a monthly staple for us! Thank you 🙂
Hi Maggie, I made this last night. Wife loved it. Used Guilin chili sauce in lieu of Chinese chili peppers and extra ginger to make up for the garlic which she cannot tolerate. Will be near a 99 Ranch this weekend and plant to get lots of Asian type eggplants to make Ma Po (I have lots of these eggplant seedlings ready to go, but that’s about 80 days away).
You’ve done it again, Maggie! This was such a good meal. We has it with you easy Singapore noodle recipe and both have gone down well with the family! What’s so helpful is your very straightforward recipe directions. Everything flows so well and is so clear. But the food is absolutely delicious! Thanks again