Low Fat Baked General Tso Chicken

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This sweet and spicy chicken is one of my favorite things to find at a good Chinese buffet and I sometimes make this lower fat version at home using baked chicken pieces instead of deep fried. Most people who have tried it say they would not have been able to tell that it was not deep fried. This recipe works well with baked chicken wings as well, some would say even better!

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  • Average budget

Ingredients

  • 2 -3 pounds boneless chicken thighs or breasts, cut in strips
  • 1 egg + 2 tbsp water whisked together to make an egg wash
  • Combine
  • 1 cup flour
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
  • 3 tbsp ground ginger
  • 2 tsp salt
  • In a small bowl, mix together
  • 4 tbsp soya 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 cup sugar
  • ¼ cup water

Preparation

Step 1

Dip the chicken pieces in the egg wash then dredge them in the flour mixture. Place on a lightly oiled baking sheet and lightly drizzle or the tops with a little more olive oil. Bake at 375° for about 25-30 minutes. Flip the pieces at half way through the cooking time.

Step 2

While the chicken is baking, prepare your sauce. Don’t walk away from this sauce; it gets very hot when making the caramel base and can burn easily so pay careful attention while cooking it.

Step 3

In a small bowl, mix together

4 tbsp soya 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
and set aside

Step 4

In a medium saucepan boil together
1 cup sugar
¼ cup water

Step 5

Boil this over medium heat, watching constantly until the caramel starts to turn a light amber color and you can begin to smell the caramel. When it reaches this stage, give the other ingredients in the bowl a quick stir to make sure the corn starch is dissolved then add it all at once to the hot caramel.

Step 6

Be careful at this stage because this sauce can foam up considerably for a few seconds and it is very hot. Simmer for only few minutes and remove from the heat and allow to cool down slightly.

Step 7

Toss the sauce with the cooked chicken pieces and serve over plain steamed rice.

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