General Tso Chicken

Crispy chicken in a light sauce. It's supposed to serve 4, but I make this for 2 and it leaves us a little leftover. Jalapeño can be substituted with red bell pepper if you don't like spicy. 

• Ready In: 1 hr
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 1⁄2 lbs chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2  cups cornstarch
• 3  cups  vegetable oil (for frying)
• 1  jalapeno pepper
• 3  tablespoons scallions (sliced for garnish)

• For the Marinade

• 1  tablespoon soy sauce
• 1  tablespoon  chinese rice wine or 1  tablespoon dry sherry
• 3  egg whites

• For the Sauce

• 1⁄2 cup water
• 2  tablespoons soy sauce
• 2  tablespoons sugar
• 2  tablespoons rice vinegar
• 2  teaspoons hoisin sauce
• 2  teaspoons  chili paste (Sambal Oelek or Sriracha)
• 2  teaspoons  chinese rice wine or 2  teaspoons dry sherry
• 2  teaspoons  sesame oil
• 2  teaspoons cornstarch
• 2  garlic cloves (grated)
• 2  teaspoons ginger (grated)

Directions

1. Prepare the marinade: Mix the soy sauce, rice wine, and egg whites. Toss in cubed chicken to the marinade and let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Prep the sauce: Mix water, soy sauce, sugar, rice vinegar, hoisin sauce, chili paste, rice wine, sesame oil, cornstarch. Grate 2 cloves garlic and ginger into the sauce. Set aside.
3. Coat the marinated chicken in the 2 cups of cornstarch. Shake off any excess before frying.
4. Heat the 3 cups vegetable oil in wok until 350°F. Wooden chopsticks will bubble when the oil is ready.
5. Fry the marinaded and coated chicken cubes in batches until golden brown. It should be about 4 to 5 minutes per batch. Remove the chicken and drain on paper towels. Set the chicken in a warm oven on a baking sheet with a rack after a few minutes of draining as you work through the batches.
6. Sprinkle a little white pepper on the cooked chicken.
7. Drain the oil into safe container to discard later. .
8. Reheat the wok or skillet over medium-high heat and stir-fry jalapeno. Set aside.
9. Pour in the sauce mixture into the wok and stir until thickened, about 1 to 2 minutes on med-high.
10. Toss in the fried chicken to coat with sauce. Add your sauteed jalapeno and transfer it to a serving dish. Garnish with scallions. Serve with white rice.