Tofu General Tso's

Howiesar's Note:

I love General Tso's Sauce and have always wanted a vegetarian version, so here it is! Not only is it lighter than the chicken version but it tastes amazing and even meat eaters are sure to love it! Try your local Asian store for the rice wine and vinegar. I love to serve this with brown rice.

• Total Time: 5 hrs 35 mins
• Prep Time: 35 mins
• Cook Time: 5 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 3

• 1 (16 ounce) container extra firm tofu
• 2 eggs , beaten (or egg replacer to make it Vegan)
• 5 teaspoons cornstarch , for sauce
• ½ cup cornstarch , for breading
• 5 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 6 ½ tablespoons rice wine
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• ½ cup oil (for frying)
• chili oil

Directions:

1. Take tofu out of liquid it came in and chop into 1 inch cubes, press these between two towels to take out the moisture and dry them.
2. Mix rice vinegar, rice wine, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, 2 Tbsp Sesame oil, and chili oil to taste. Add to this the cubes of tofu, cover and let marinate in refrigerator at least 4 hours, preferably over night.
3. Next, remove the tofu from the marinade. Try to remove as much outer moisture from them as you can. Set them aside.
4. Take the marinade and add to it the 5 tsp Cornstarch and 1/2 cup sugar. Then whisk it together.
5. In a large sauce pan bring the marinade (now General Tso's Sauce) to boiling over medium low heat. It should be thick when done. Then remove from heat.
6. Beat two eggs, and immerse the tofu in them, covering all sides with egg. Then remove the tofu and place it on a paper towel. Then toss the tofu in the 1/2 cup cornstarch to lightly cover each side. Shake off the excess.
7. Heat 1/2 cup oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Then place in the tofu, turn it during cooking so that each side gets browned.
8. When all sides are browned, place the tofu on a paper towel to get rid of excess oil. Then add the tofu into the sauce and heat over low for 3-5 minutes until everything is heated through.
9. Enjoy.

Reviews

[Chef #1534742]

Too salty!! 1/2 cup of soy sauce is way too much. Soy sauce is very flavorful and a little goes a long way. There is another General Tso's Tofu recipe on recipezaar that has proportions that sound a lot more normal. About 2 tablespoons vs. 1/2 cup of soy sauce. I felt awful pouring out almost my entire bottle. Almost inedible due to too much sodium. Must go drink water now and go shopping for soy sauce. Also, didn't have rice vinegar so used apple vinegar instead. It was way too sour and had to balance with sugar. Used 3 tablespoons of apple vinegar and it was still too salty. Rice vinegar must be a lot more mild and less sour. Also added green onions/ scallions, which didn't add or take away from the flavour. The green color was nice though. Overall, the color, consistency, and feel was right on. Felt like a real chef in a Chinese restaurant in my own home. But, in my opinion, was way too salty but depends on your palate.

[fetosoap]

I made this for the first time today without marinading it. I didn't have any Chili Oil and I think it tasted fine without it. (but I will try it with some if I pick up a bottle) I had a bowl full of egg leftover, so next time I will just use one egg to coat the tofu. It was tasty. I will be making this again.

[Chef #1137864]

honestly, since the tofu is already very absorbent, there is no need to marinate the tofu. I tried it without marinating it and it tasted amazing. I made it a second time and marinated the tofu, but found that it burned too easily when I fried it and the flavor was too strong and also there was barely any sauce left. it is a good recipe, but I wouldn't marinate the tofu next time.