Easy General Tso Chicken for One

I love Chinese cuisine. Stir fries, sweet and sour, rice, egg rolls, won tons, etc. I love it all. I can remember when I was a very young woman and we moved to Calgary, we would often go to a Chinese restaurant in the downtown area.

I remember thinking it was very elegant with its low lighting, paper lanterns, lacquer furniture, dragons, etc. At the time, I thought that I would love to have my house decorated like that. Oooo haha I cannot imagine that now! That would have been ridiculous!

It did have very good food however. We would order a la carte and split the dishes. I loved the sweet and sour of course, and the lemon chicken. Another favorite was General Tso Chicken. It was a bit spicy, but not overly so.

One of the highlights was getting the fortune cookies at the end with the bill.

We used to get really good Chinese food in the place I live now, but I am afraid that is not true any longer. I have been greatly disappointed every time we have gone out. Nothing seems the same since Covid. There are no more buffets either. Every Chinese eatery in the valley for the most part is also open only for takeaway, with the exception of the one in the mall, and I have to say the food there is appalling.

Having said that, some of the best Chinese meals I have eaten through the years have been the ones made at home, or at my brother and sister in law's place. You can't beat homemade Chinese food. Always delicious and always to your own taste.

This General Tso Chicken recipe for one that I am sharing today has been adapted from one I found on Christine at Home. The simplicity of it appealed to me. Also her recipe was for only two people and I found it very easy to adapt it to feed one person, moi.

I also have another version of General Tso Chicken for two that you can find here on my page. What can I say about that, but that I am always game to try a new version of anything. Both versions of this dish are delicious!

I had all of the ingredients in the house. I keep one shelf on my refrigerator door stocked with every Chinese ingredient you might need to cook a dish. I have fish sauce, several kinds of soy sauce, hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, toasted sesame oil, etc.

That way I am never very far from cooking up my own Chinese meal at home.

I love crispy chicken in any way shape or form, but combine it with a tasty sauce with Oriental flavors, and you can count me all in!

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE GENERAL TSO CHICKEN

A few simple ingredients, and if you are like me, you probably already have them all in!

For the Sauce:

2 TBS Hoisin sauce
1 TBS soy sauce
1 TBS brown sugar, packed
1/2 TBS rice wine vinegar
1 fat clove garlic, peeled and minced
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (or red chili flakes)
1/2 TBS cornstarch (corn flour)
1/4 cup (60ml) cold water

You will also need:

1/2 lb (226g) boneless skinless chicken thighs diced (about 2)
2 TBS cornstarch (corn flour)
2 slices ginger peeled (each slice is about ¼ inch thick)
vegetable oil for frying
Sesame seeds and chopped spring onions to garnish (optional)

I love hoisin sauce. I will often squirt some on my fried rice. I just adore the combination of flavors. It is often confused with oyster sauce, but they are not the same thing at all. Hoisin sauce is made from a fermented soy bean paste, is thicker and is much sweeter.

She did not specify toasted sesame oil. I used the toasted sesame oil because I felt that it would pack a much better flavor punch and not get lost in the flavors of everything else.

You can use more or less hot pepper flakes/crushed chilies, depending on how much heat you want your dish to pack. I always err on the side of caution.

HOW TO MAKE GENERAL TSO CHICKEN

This goes together very simply and very quickly. I have included option instructions for doing this in the air fryer if you have one and you want to use it.

Combine all of the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Do NOT pat your chicken dry. Dice each thigh into about 6 to 8 pieces. Place into a bowl along with the cornstarch (corn flour). Mix to coat each piece generously. You can add a bit more cornstarch if you need it.

Heat a large heavy bottomed pan over medium high heat. Once it is hot add the oil. You will only need it to be about 1/4 inch thick. Make sure the oil is hot before you add the chicken.

Add the chicken pieces in one layer. Leave plenty of space between each piece. Do not crowd the pan. (You may need to work in batches depending on the size of your pan.)

Brown on one side and then carefully flip the pieces over. This will take 5 to 6 minutes per side. Once the chicken is browned and cooked through, remove to a plate lined with paper towels. Keep warm

Drain excess any oil from the pan. Add the ginger and cook over medium high heat for about 30 seconds. Add the sauce ingredients. Bring it to the boil, stirring and allowing it to thicken.

Toss in your fried chicken, turning it to coat in the sauce completely. Serve hot, garnished with a pinch of sesame seed and some chopped spring onions. (If desired.)

HOW TO COOK GENERAL TSO CHICKEN IN THE AIR FRYER

To cook the chicken in an air fryer: Coat your chicken with the cornstarch. Place in the air fryer basket, leaving plenty of space around each piece. (Again you may need to do it in batches depending.) Spritz with some oil and air fry for 12 to 14 minutes at 400*F/200*C. No need to flip them over.

Prepare sauce as above and add the cooked chicken to the sauce as per the recipe, turning to coat and garnish as above, as desired.

This General Tso Chicken recipe was really delicious. Not only was it quick and easy to make, but it cut in half perfectly and made just the right amount for just myself.

I enjoyed it with some steamed rice and broccoli. I just adore broccoli with meals like this. I may have overdone the sesame seeds a bit, but what can I say? I am never half in to anything. All in or nothing! That's me!!

Authentic or not, here are some other really delicious Chinese types of dishes that I have cooked here in The English Kitchen:

CHINESE ORANGE CHICKEN FOR TWO - Crispy coated pieces of chicken breast in a lush and tangy orange sauce. The sauce is a beautiful mix of oriental flavors (aside from the orange juice). Use fresh orange juice if you can, but a good bottled orange juice will also work well.

CANTONESE CHICKEN CHOP SUEY - This recipe is one I adapted from a recipe I found in Betty Crocker's Lost Recipes book. What you have here is plenty of tender pieces and crispy tender vegetables in a beautifully flavored sauce with a toasted cashew nut garnish. Sized perfectly for two people.

Yield: 1

Author: Marie Rayner