From-scratch General Tso Chicken

This General Tso Chicken recipe is a house favorite ever! If you are looking for a great family-friendly weeknight meal, this straightforward “fakeout” recipe is ready in under 30 minutes and doesn’t require any deep frying!

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Better than takeout General Tsos Chicken

Need an straightforward weeknight supper, but don’t want to spring for takeout tonight? This straightforward General Tso Chicken recipe is the answer.

Don’t get us wrong: we love supporting our local restaurants and businesses whenever we can, but — probably like you — we can’t afford to eat out every night and sometimes we crave some General Tso’s chicken!

We love making Crockpot Honey Garlic Chicken, but it takes a few hours and sometimes we want something much quicker.

General Tso Chicken is our go-to dish when we order Chinese food. While it’s often deep fried meat with a crispy crust smothered in general tso’s sauce, our at-home version foregoes the fried chicken pieces and instead is a pan-fried chicken served with a sweet and salty sauce mixture.

What is General Tso Chicken?

Named for a real general, General Tso Chicken is a classic dish on the menu at Chinese restaurants across America. Though the original dish is actually from Taiwan By a Taiwanese chef, it has been Americanized after making its way to the United States, however, to be made with fried chicken and a sweeter sauce.

Why you will come back to this General Tso’s Chicken Recipe

We've been making this recipe for years and it’s a house staple. Anytime we are craving some takeout, it’s the recipe we turn to again and again.

General Tso’s chicken sauce makes it one of the most popular Chinese takeout dishes for a good reason!

The method is such a winner and we bet it will go on regular rotation in your house too. Here’s why:

• It’s so straightforward to cook. It’s ready in under an hour!
• General Tso’s is a great “fakeout” takeout recipe to enjoy anytime you’re craving some takeout.
• The method is suited to picky kids! Everyone in the family will love it.
• It works well as a meal prep recipe for busy weeks.
• There’s no deep-fried chicken to mess with.

If you love fakeout recipes, check out this from-scratch Teriyaki beef and rice.

General Tso Recipe Ingredients

Here’s what you will need to make this from-scratch General Tso chicken recipe:

• Boneless skinless chicken breast – We like the lean white meat of chicken breasts, but you can easily use boneless skinless chicken thighs. Chicken thigh pieces are dark meat, but they are oh-so-juicy!
• Coarse kosher salt & ground black pepper – we recommend always using coarse kosher salt or sea salt for a house favorite results
• Garlic powder – Using fresh garlic powder that isn’t expired is the way to go. Having a flavorful garlic powder will insure each piece of chicken is packed with flavor.
• Avocado oil – Instead of avocado oil you can use sesame oil, olive oil, or even vegetable oil. We like the lightness of avocado, but sesame oil is a great one to have on hand for Asian food.

Instead of chicken, you could also substitute tofu for a plant-based option (the sauce is vegan!). The General Tso Sauce is also great over shrimp and pork. The sweet and savory sauce is versatile.

General Tso’s Chicken Sauce Ingredients

Here is what goes in general tso’s sauce:

• Brown sugar
• Low sodium soy sauce
• Hoisin sauce
• Rice wine vinegar
• Minced ginger
• Red chile puree
• Minced garlic cloves
• Corn starch
• Cold water
• Green onion
• Sesame seeds

Hoisin sauce Can be hard to find, but we found it at our local grocery store, as well as Walmart, in the international aisle. You can also find it on Amazon.

Instead of red chili puree, you can use Chili garlic sauce, which you can Make yourself Or buy. The most popular brand is Huy Fong.

How to make General Tsos Chicken

Here is how to cook this from-scratch General Tso Chicken from scratch.

First, season the chicken with garlic, salt, and pepper powder.

Add to a large skillet over medium heat to medium-high heat with the avocado oil (or your choice of cooking oil). Cook, stirring until chicken is cooked and golden brown in the hot oil.

General Tso’s Chicken Recipe Tips

Chicken should be 165°F according to a Meat thermometer And no longer pink inside.

Don’t overcook the chicken. It’s best to add the sauce before the chicken is cooked all the way through.

Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl, make the sauce by combining brown sugar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, red chile puree, and garlic. Whisk until completely combined.

Add the sauce to the skillet with the chicken and turn the heat down to medium.

In a separate small bowl, make the cornstarch slurry by whisking together the cornstarch and cold water until smooth. This is what helps to thicken the sauce.

When the sauce begins to boil, pour in the cornstarch slurry. Stir it in while simmering until the sauce thickens.

Enjoy while warm. Store in an airtight, food-safe container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Straightforward General Tso Chicken variations

If you like your food spicy, you have a few options!

To make this General Tso chicken spicy, you can add extra chili puree, sriracha, or red pepper flakes to the sauce.

Our husband loves spicy food and these are his tried-and-true recommendations.

What to serve with From-scratch General Tso Chicken

You may also want to add White rice To your shopping list! Rice is the classic side dish served with General Tso Chicken. We like to serve ours over rice topped with sliced green onions (or spring onion) and sesame seeds.

We like to make our rice in our Instant Pot, but you can easily make it on the stove, in the microwave or in the oven as well.

If you prefer fried rice with your takeout, it is straightforward to cook at home too. We love this Fried rice recipe That includes ham or bacon. It’s so good!

This Oven-baked broccoli Is also wonderful with all kinds of dishes. Toss it with some soy sauce or a few spoonfuls of the General Tso sauce for a satisfying dressing to go with this Asian chicken dish.

Products used to make this General Tso’s Chicken recipe

Knife set

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Skillet

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Measuring cups

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Measuring spoons

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Glass mixing bowls

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Silicone whisk

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How to store leftover General Tso’s Chicken

Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 5 days.

You can also freeze this general tso’s chicken recipe. To freeze, you’ll want to allow it to cool completely.

Once it is cooled, place it in an airtight container and freeze for up to 6 months.

You can also freeze them in Souper Cubes. Once they are frozen, pop them out and put them in a freezer-safe container.

Reheating From-scratch General Tso Chicken

While we'll admit we often microwave leftovers in a pinch, a house favorite way to reheat General Tso chicken is to use the oven so that it stays crispy.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the chicken in a baking dish or on a lined baking sheet, spreading them out so each piece can be reheated separately.

Cover with foil and bake for about 5-10 minutes until heated through.

General Tso Recipe FAQs

Is General Tso chicken healthy?

At restaurants, General Tso Chicken is usually served fried. This recipe that you can make at home is not fried, so that makes it a little bit more healthful. The sweet sauce, however, contains sugar so it may not be fit for all diets.

Overall, this recipe makes X servings and is approximately X calories per serving.

What does General Tso Chicken taste like?

General Tso Chicken is a chicken dish of bite-size chicken pieces that is coated in a sweet, tangy and slightly spicy sauce. It is fairly mild in terms of spice level, but it can be made spicier with red chili flakes or hot sauce.

Is General Tso chicken gluten free?

At restaurants, this chicken dish is usually fried and may contain gluten. This recipe, however, does not use flour or gluten, so it is safely gluten-free.

General Tso vs Sesame Chicken

General Tso chicken and Sesame chicken Are totally different dishes. The chicken is cooked similarly, but sesame chicken is made with a different sauce.

With General Tso, the sauce is sweet with a little bit of spicy kick thanks to the inclusion of chili. The sauce for sesame chicken is much sweeter and without heat.

General Tso vs Orange Chicken

Similarly to sesame chicken, Orange chicken Is also quite different from General Tso chicken.

Orange chicken is made with a sweet sauce that is flavored with orange juice and orange zest. Made with chilis, General Tso chicken has a spicier sauce.