Tonight’s dinner was a bit more hectic than normal. Thursdays are baseball nights, which means my husband leaves at 6:30 to coach RBI in Austin. Well, we didn’t start cooking until 5:45, and I, of course, wanted to cook something new – not surprising.
I was confident, pretty much the whole time, that it would be a disaster because I was missing a couple of things and my timing was off, but wow, it turned out great! If you’re trying to feed your craving for some Chinese food, this is it. Also, something about me, I’m sort of a rule follower…or maybe I’m not, I’m not sure, but I resist changing recipes. However, I think a big part of this cooking journey is learning that you can do what you want in the kitchen; it’s going in your belly, who cares if it goes against the recipe?
So, if you’re saying, “Hey Jen, I really shouldn’t be eating fried foods,” then don’t fry the chicken! Do what’s best for you and your belly. Or perhaps, you don’t have a couple of ingredients; I always look up substitutes when I don’t have something. I used the General Tso recipe from Favorite Family Recipes but didn’t have any green onions on hand. It came out perfectly crispy with a wonderfully sweet, slightly spicy, flavor. I’m writing below how I followed their recipe, but be sure to check out their page for other great recipes and videos!
For some grains, I made fried rice, which I will be posting about next.
Ingredients
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2 lbs chicken breast, cut into bite-size chunks
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1 c flour
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Canola oil (or any favorite oil for frying)
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1/4 c sugar
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1/4 c soy sauce (I prefer low-sodium)
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1/4 c pineapple juice (unsweetened)
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1/4 c white wine vinegar
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2 cloves minced garlic
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Dash ground ginger (or 1 t fresh grated ginger)
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1/4 t cayenne pepper
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1 T corn starch mixed with 3 T water
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4 green onions, sliced
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Heat oil in a frying pan on medium-high heat.
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While the oil is heating up, pour flour into a shallow bowl. Place the pieces of chicken in the bowl, flipping them to lightly coat them in flour.Tip: If you have a meat thermometer, check that the oil is about 350 degrees. If it’s not hot enough, the chicken will be greasy. If you don’t have a meat thermometer, you can test the oil by dipping a wooden spoon in the oil. If bubbles form around it, it’s ready. If it’s bubbling hard, it’s too hot.
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Fry the chicken in batches to ensure the oil maintains its temperature. Dry the chicken on a rack, and while still warm, sprinkle cayenne pepper on top.
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Meanwhile, combine sauce ingredients (sugar, soy sauce, pineapple juice, vinegar, garlic, and ginger) in a saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
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Once the sauce is smooth, slowly add a mixture of cornstarch and water.
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When your sauce is thickened to your liking, combine it with your chicken and serve.
