General Tso's Chicken

General Tso's Chicken

Marinate and sauce
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup white vinegar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 cups water
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds), cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons graded fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Coating and Frying
3 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups cornstarch
1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour or GF flour mix
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
4 cups vegetable oil.

1. For the marinade and sauce: whisk the hoisin, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch and water in a bowl. Combine 6 tablespoons of the hoisin mixture in a zipper locked bag; refrigerate 30 minutes.

2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat until simmering. Cook the garlic, ginger and pepper flakes until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add 2 cups of the hoisin mixture and simmer, whisking constantly, until dark brown and thickened, about 2 minutes. Cover and keep sauce warm.

3. For coating and frying: whisk the egg whites in a shallow dish until foamy. Combine the cornstarch, flour, baking soda and remaining hoisin mixture in a second shallow dish until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Remove the chicken from the marinate and pat dry with paper towels. Toss half of the chicken with the egg whites until well coated, then dredge the chicken in the cornstarch mixture, pressing to adhere. Transfer the coated chicken to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken.

4. Heat the oil in a dutch oven over medium high heat until the oil reaches 350 degrees (Use an instant read thermometer that registers high temperatures or clip a candy thermometer/deep fat thermometer onto the side of the pan.) Fry half of the chicken until golden brown about 3 minutes, turning each piece halfway through cooking. Transfer the chicken to a paper towel-lined plate. Return the oil to 350 degrees and repeat with the remaining chicken.

5. To serve: Warm the sauce over medium-low heat until simmering, about 1 minute. Add the crisp chicken and toss to coat. Serve.

Serves 4