Recipe: Lemon N'Ginger's General Tso's chicken

At Lemon N'Ginger Asian Grille, chef and owner Paul Jiang's beautiful Asian dishes have been a Harford County favorite since the restaurant's opening in 2013. The menu spans the Asian continent, including dishes from China, Japan and Thailand, but the most popular is a Chinese-American staple: General Tso's chicken.

Jiang's recipe for General Tso's is straightforward and quick to replicate, making it easy for cooks to recreate the crunchy chicken and sweet-and-spicy sauce at home — fortune cookies not included.

General Tso’s Chicken
Makes 1 serving

For the chicken:

½ pound dark chicken meat
½ teaspoon salt
Pinch of white pepper
Pinch meat tenderizer
1 egg
¼ cup water
1 cup cornstarch
5 ½ cups oil, divided

For the sauce:

[More Maryland news] How the Jones Falls Expressway's history explains why Baltimore's first highway is so prone to crashes »

1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 ½ tablespoons hoisin sauce
½ cup sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon pineapple juice
Pinch of white pepper
¼ cup water

To combine:

1 teaspoon oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 scallion, chopped, white part only
1 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon cold water
Whole chili peppers, to taste
Sesame oil

To fry the chicken:

1. Cut the chicken into large chunks.
2. Mix the chicken with salt, white pepper, meat tenderizer, egg and ½ cup of water. Mix well and let sit for 20 minutes.
3. Add 1 cup cornstarch and mix well.
4. Add ½ cup oil and mix well until chicken is evenly coated.
5. In a deep pot, heat 5 cups of oil until it reaches 350 degrees.
6. Working in batches and being careful not to crowd the pot, deep-fry individual chunks of chicken until they are crispy on the outside, about 5 minutes.
7. Set on a rack to drain.

To make the sauce:

1. Mix oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, sugar, ketchup, vinegar, soy sauce, pineapple juice, white pepper and ¼ cup water.
2. Set aside.

To combine:

1. Heat a wok to medium heat and add oil.
2. Add chopped scallion and garlic. Cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Add sauce mixture and bring to a boil.
4. Add cornstarch and water mixture. Cook, stirring until a thick consistency develops.
5. Add chili peppers.
6. Stir in chicken and mix evenly.
7. Mix in a few drops of sesame oil.
8. Garnish with steamed broccoli and serve with steamed rice.

Recipe: Lemon N'Ginger's General Tso's chicken

Don't miss our 4th of July sale!
Save big on local news.

SALE ENDS SOON

$1 FOR 12 WEEKS

Don't miss our 4th of July sale!Save big on local news.

SALE ENDS SOON

$1 FOR 12 WEEKS

Don't miss our 4th of July sale!
Save big on local news.