One of my favorite American-Chinese dishes is General Tso’s chicken. It may not be an authentic Chinese dish, but it’s one you’ll find on the menu at just about every Chinese restaurant in the United States.
It’s the number one choice for Chinese takeout, and now you’ll be able to make it in your home kitchen, faster than ordering out.
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Red pepper flakes, fresh garlic, and fresh ginger give this golden brown chicken its flavorful heat. The sweet and spicy sauce gets its distinct flavor from rice vinegar, hoisin sauce, and soy sauce. A little corn starch is used to give the sauce its hearty, glaze-like finish.
Named after a successful military leader of the Qing dynasty, Zuo Zongtang, General Tso’s chicken is easy to make and can be on your table in less than half an hour! It’s perfect for busy weeknight dinners or a date night.
At first glance you might think its too much work to make General Tso’s Chicken, but there are just a few simple steps to creating this flavorful chicken dish with its sweet and savory sauce.
Most grocery stores carry the sauce ingredients, so you won’t have to find an Asian supermarket to obtain them. Chinese food is really mainstream and your local supermarket should carry everything you need to create this delicious dish!
If you enjoy making Chinese food at home, try our Stir fried Pork with Ho Fun Noodles and Tangerine Beef recipes.
What to Serve with General Tso’s Chicken
General Tso’s chicken is usually served with rice. Jasmine rice, white rice, brown rice, and fried rice are the perfect complement to the tangy sauce.
Steamed broccoli is the perfect vegetable side dish or mixed into the General Tso’s sauce, like our beef and broccoli.
Ingredients to Make General Tso’s Chicken
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make our General Tso’s Chicken recipe. In Chef Speak, this is called the Mise en Place, which translates into Everything in its Place.
Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed the cooking process, but it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
We used regular soy sauce to make this recipe, but you can also use light soy sauce or dark soy sauce to make the dish.
Vegetable oil is used to fry the chicken pieces, but you can also use olive oil. For added flavor mix in a little sesame oil.
How to Make General Tso’s Chicken
OPTIONAL: Toast sesame seeds and set aside until finished with the dish.
- Cut the boneless skinless chicken thighs into 1-inch cubes. Then pat them dry with paper towels.
*You can use boneless skinless chicken breasts instead of the thighs. - Toss chicken in batches with cornstarch, tapping off the excess. Set dredged chicken on a platter and set aside.
- Preheat a non-stick skillet with one tablespoon of vegetable oil.
- Add the chicken pieces to the hot oil and cook on both sides for 2-3 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. Add more vegetable oil if needed. There should be about one tablespoon of oil in the pan for each batch.
*Depending on the size of your skillet, cook the chicken in 2 to 3 batches. Place the cooked chicken on a wire rack or plate lined with paper towels, to drain while you prepare the sauce. - Add the cold water and cornstarch to a small bowl and mix to combine, making a cornstarch slurry. Set aside until needed.
- Add the soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, hoisin sauce, cornstarch slurry, and sugar to a small bowl. Whisk to combine and set aside until needed.
*You will need to re-whisk the sauce before adding it to the pan, as the corn starch will settle as it sits.
- Add the fresh chopped garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes to the pan.
- Sautee for about 30 seconds or until fragrant.
- Add the sauce to the skillet and bring it to a simmer.
- Continue to stir as it simmers for 1-2 minutes.
*Taste the sauce and add additional soy sauce or rice vinegar if needed. - Add the crispy chicken pieces to the pan.
- Toss to coat them in the General Tso sauce.
Garnish the General Tso’s Chicken with toasted sesame seeds and serve with Jasmine or white rice. For added color you can sprinkle sliced green onions over the top of the dish.
*Some Chinese restaurants add broccoli to the dish. If desired, par-cook the broccoli until cooked but firm. For this recipe, use about 2 cups of cooked broccoli florets.
It’s easy to make Chinese food in your own kitchen, and I know after one bite, our General Tso’s Chicken will be a chicken dish you’ll be making all the time!
Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
To reheat your leftover General Tso’s chicken, bring a small amount of hoisin sauce or chicken broth to a simmer in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the leftover chicken to the pan and stir frequently to prevent burning and ensure equal heating.
You can also reheat the chicken in the air fryer. We recommend using a silicone liner, as the sauce can drip and be difficult to clean.
Recipe FAQ’S
Orange chicken is fruity, tangy, and sweeter, with a lot of citrus flavor. General Tso’s is sweet, sour, and spicy all in one, with a lot more kick to it.
Toasting your sesame seeds will bring a lot more flavor and crunch to your recipe.
The smell is also wonderful! Your mouth will water as you prepare the rest of your recipe.
Furthermore, some people report that toasted seeds are easier to digest than seeds that are not toasted.
If you don’t like the flavor or texture of sesame seeds, you don’t have to add any to your General Tso’s chicken. The flavor will change slightly, but not everyone likes the taste and texture of sesame seeds.
General Tso’s is considered spicy, though the degree of spice varies based on what recipe is followed and whether or not certain ingredients are added or withheld. Our recipe calls for ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, but you can use more or less based on your preference.
When ordering out, you can generally use a menu to see how “hot” a recipe is at each restaurant.
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General Tso’s Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
Chicken
- 2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (or boneless skinless chicken breasts)
- ½ cup corn starch
- ¼ cup vegetable oil for frying, plus more as needed. For added flavor substitute one tablespoon of sesame oil for one tablespoon of vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoon fresh ginger – finely minced or grated
- 1 tablespoon fresh garlic – finely minced or grated
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes more or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds -optional for garnish
General Tso's Sauce
- ½ cup cold water
- 5 tablespoon soy sauce regular, low sodium, or dark soy sauce
- 3 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 ½ tablespoon hoisin sauce
- 4 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions
- OPTIONAL: Toast sesame seeds and set aside until finished with the dish.
Chicken
- Cut the boneless chicken thighs into 1-inch cubes. *You can use boneless skinless chicken breasts instead of the thighs.
- Toss chicken in batches with cornstarch, tapping off the excess.
- Set dredged chicken on a platter and set aside.
- Add the cold water and cornstarch to a small bowl and mix to combine. Set aside until needed.
- Add the soy sauce, rice vinegar, hoisin sauce, cornstarch mixture, and sugar to a small bowl. Whisk to combine and set aside until needed.*You will need to re-whisk the sauce before adding it to the pan, as the cornstarch will settle as it sits.
- Preheat a non-stick skillet with a little oil.
- Add the chicken to the pan and cook on both sides for 2-3 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. Add more vegetable oil if needed. There should be about one tablespoon of oil in the pan for each batch. *Depending on the size of your skillet, cook the chicken in 2 to 3 batches., Place the cooked chicken on a wire rack or plate lined with paper towels, to drain while you prepare the sauce.
General Tso's Sauce
- Add the fresh chopped garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes to the pan. Sautee for about 30 seconds or until fragrant.
- Add the sauce to the skillet and bring it to a simmer. Continue to stir as it simmers for 1-2 minutes. Taste the sauce and add additional soy sauce or rice vinegar if needed.
- Add the cooked chicken pieces to the pan and toss to coat them in the sauce. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and serve with Jasmine or white rice.
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