General Tso's Chicken

Oh how I love Chinese food.  But it doesn't always love me. It's a shame really. Fortunately thanks to pinterest (my new favorite cookbook) I can make it at home. This one was a bit of a challenge. Mostly because making a caramel sauce scares me. Stuff of nightmares really. Hate it. But totally worth it.

So, if you want the link to an awesome DIY Chinese take out (great the next day for making co-workers drool at lunch time) here it is. Your welcome. It's worth it. Trust me.

Now if you looked at the link already (impatient thing that you are) that grocery list looks intimidating. Its not. I live in the middle of nowhere where's-the-nearest-outhouse-and-muskrat-skinning-shed eastern shore of MD. Seriously, when my mother moved here she went to the store looking for lasagna

noodles and ricotta cheese, and the store person didn't know what that was, let alone carry it. Its improved a bit over the years needless to say. But I digress....

This is totally worth the walk around in the ethnic food section of your store. Or better yet a visit to Wegman's (aka Mecca, aka My Happy Place).  It's like a game of hide and seek but you will find it eventually. And then you have the stuff to make LOTS of this stuff and feed your face FOREVER. Its just that good :)

So... Directions (again this is what i used feel free to follow the recipe link exactly, turns out good either way)

 Three chicken breasts still semi-frozen to make it easier to cut (I let them thaw the rest of the way as i got everything else together)

1 egg beaten mixed with about 1-2 tbsp water to make a nice egg wash

1 cup flour
½ tsp black pepper
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
3 tbsp ground ginger
2 tsp salt

1. Mix up the flour and stuff well.  Put half in one bowl and half in another. I hope you already have the egg wash in a third bowl..... Line them up! DRY, WET, DRY

2. Dip the chicken in the dry stuff, then the egg, then into the next dry set. Place on a REALLY well greased pan or tin foil. (Mine stuck a bit to the pan, but thats normal for me)

3. Repeat till all the chicken is done (terribly tedious) and then pop in the oven at 375 for about 25-30 mins until cooked. Flip it half way through if you are so inclined. (please be so inclined, it tastes better that way)

Next set!

The SAUCE!! (This is done in two parts, hang with me. Its worth it)

4 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp rice wine vinegar (white wine vinegar is fine in a pinch)
¼ cup water
2 tbsp toasted sesame seed oil
2 tbsp hot chilli paste or sauce (use more or less to taste if you don’t like it very hot)
½ tsp salt
2 tsp corn starch
3 cloves minced garlic
3 tbsp freshly grated ginger

1. Mix ALL that stuff up up together in a bowl and set it aside. (Side note I used 1.5 Tbsp of the chili sauce and that was the perfect amt for us. Also freeze your ginger afterwards to save it for later use)

1 cup sugar
¼ cup water

2. Put THAT stuff on a boiler. Your are going to make a caramel (insert scary music here). 

3. Bring it to a boil over medium heat and WATCH that stuff. Like HARD. And stir it alot. It takes time. I'm paranoid so I cooked at a lower heat and it took about 10 mins. Basically you boil and watch it until it starts to turn faintly brown. Thats the caramel magic happening. Once it turns brownish, yank it off the heat real quick.

4. Give the bowl of red ingredients a quick mix (You did leave the whisk in that bowl right?) and pour it into the caramel. Careful, it bubbled a bit on me and I had to whisk like a mad woman to keep it from boiling over. 

5. Put it back on the heat and give it a stir for a few minutes. This will help mix it for the yumminess you deserve.

Rice and broccoli

1. I like brown rice, but we only had white. So oh well... Cook that up. While you're at it steam up some broccoli. If you need directions, use the instant stuff and read the box. I made the boyfriend do it, so I don't have anything clever to write here. 

So now you get to build your own Chinese dinner!

I personally go rice, chicken and broccoli, cover in sauce. But it's your dinner, go for whatever you want. I won't judge. Much. 

Someday I promise I will get pictures. Someday.....