Best General Tso's Chicken from Serious Eats

Entered for safe-keeping. Not candy-coated, this General Tso's Chicken from J. Kenji López-Alt, Chief Creative Officer of Serious Eats, has vinegary kick to balance the sugar. It gets a crisp crust from the vodka in the chicken coating. Adding some of the marinade to the coating gives extra crunch. For more information, see http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/04/the-food-lab-bringing-home-general-tsos-chick.html

• Ready In: 40 mins
• Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• MARINADE

• 1  egg white
• 2  tablespoons soy sauce
• 2  tablespoons  shaoxing wine or 2  tablespoons dry sherry
• 2  tablespoons vodka (80 proof)
• 1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3  tablespoons cornstarch
• 1  lb boneless skinless chicken thighs

• DRY COATING

• 1⁄2 cup flour
• 1⁄2 cup cornstarch
• 1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt

• SAUCE

• 3  tablespoons soy sauce
• 2  tablespoons  shaoxing wine or 2  tablespoons dry sherry
• 2  tablespoons  chinese rice vinegar or 2  tablespoons distilled white vinegar
• 3  tablespoons low sodium chicken broth
• 4  tablespoons sugar
• 1  teaspoon  roasted  sesame seed oil
• 1  tablespoon cornstarch
• 2  teaspoons  peanut oil or 2  teaspoons  vegetable oil or 2  teaspoons canola oil
• 2  teaspoons garlic, minced or 2  medium garlic cloves
• 2  teaspoons fresh ginger, minced (about 1-inch piece)
• 2  teaspoons scallions, minced (white part only) or 1  scallion
• 8  small  dried  chinese red peppers or 8  small  dried arbol chiles or 1⁄4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 6 -8  scallions (white parts only, cut into 1-inch lengths)

• TO FINISH

• 1 1⁄2 quarts  peanut oil or 1 1⁄2 quarts  vegetable oil or 1 1⁄2 quarts canola oil, for deep frying
• 2 -3  cups cooked white rice, for serving

Directions

1. MARINADE.
2. In a large bowl, beat egg whites until broken down and lightly foamy.
3. Add soy sauce, wine, and vodka. Whisk to combine. Set aside half of marinade in a small bowl.
4. To large bowl, add baking soda and cornstarch and whisk to combine. Add chicken and turn with fingers to coat thoroughly. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
5. DRY COAT.
6. In a second large bowl, mix flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Whisk until homogenous. Add reserved marinade from Step 3. Whisk until mixture has coarse, mealy clumps. Set aside. (I would put this in a large plastic bag.).
7. SAUCE.
8. In a small bowl, combine soy sauce, wine, vinegar, chicken stock, sugar, sesame seed oil, and cornstarch. Stir with a fork until cornstarch is dissolved and no lumps remain. Set aside.
9. In a large skillet, combine oil, garlic, ginger, minced scallions and red chilies. Place over medium heat (that's right, don't preheat skillet!).
10. Cook, stirring, until vegetables are aromatic and soft, but not browned, about 3 minutes.
11. Stir sauce mixture and add to skillet, making sure to scrape out any sugar or starch on the bottom. Cook, stirring, until sauce boils and thickens, about 1 minute.
12. Add scallion segments. Transfer sauce to a bowl to stop cooking, but don't wipe out skillet.
13. TO FINISH.
14. Heat 1 1/2 quarts oil in a large wok or Dutch oven to 350°F and adjust flame to maintain temperature.
15. One piece at a time, remove chicken from marinade and place in dry coat mixture and toss to coat and press dry mixture onto chicken to help it adhere. When all chicken is in dry coat mixture, make sure every piece is well-coated.
16. Lift chicken 1 piece at a time, shake off excess coating, and carefully LOWER into hot oil (DO NOT DROP IT!). Once all chicken has been added, cook, agitating with long chopsticks or a metal spider, and adjust flame to maintain temperature of 325-375°F, until chicken is cooked through and very crispy, about 4 minutes.
17. Transfer cooked chicken to a paper towel-lined bowl to drain.
18. Add chicken to empty skillet (the one you didn't wipe out in Step 12) and return sauce to skillet. Toss chicken, folding it with a rubber spatula until all pieces are thoroughly coated.
19. Serve immediately with white rice. (You may prefer to have more than 1/2 cup rice per serving.).