General Tso's Chicken & Shrimp {sweet + spice}

A few weeks ago I made some Orange Chicken(recipe coming soon) and my husband thought it was great and went a step further to request some General Tso's Chicken. So sure enough tonight I gave the General a try. I must say, just like the orange chicken, it was quite easy and super quick to prepare. The recipe below calls for 3 chile peppers and crushed red pepper, but feel free to use only one chile and leave out the crushed red pepper if you prefer less heat. For a sweeter sauce, just add a bit more sugar or honey and if your prefer less breading, simply use less flour/cornstarch mixture!

My husband likes his with white rice, but I prefer mine with some type of Asian noodle, and in this case, chow mein noodles. I served this along with steamed green beans seasoned with: fresh garlic, fresh ginger, olive oil, soy sauce, and brown sugar!





General Tso's Chicken & Shrimp
serves 4

Ingredients
2 Large Chicken Breasts, washed, cleaned, and cut into chunks
1/2 Lb. Shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 Dried Chile Peppers, whole & pierced
3 Eggs, beaten and placed in a medium bowl
1/2 C. Cornstarch
1/2 C. All Purpose Flour + 2T. for sauce
6 T. Vinegar
8 T. White Wine
6 T. Sugar
12 T. Soy Sauce
1 Small Bell Pepper, cut into large chunks
1 Small Yellow Onion, cut into large chunks
Salt
Black pepper
Ground Chile Pepper
1 Clove of Garlic, whole
Crushed Red Pepper - optional
2 T. Olive Oil
Peanut or Vegetable Oil - for frying
Green Onions- for garnish

Directions: Mix your flour and cornstarch along with a bit of salt in a large bowl. Season your chicken and shrimp with salt, black pepper, and your ground chile pepper. Place your diced chicken and shrimp into your bowl with the beaten eggs. Then place your meat into your flour and cornstarch mixture, being sure to let any excess egg mixture drip off. Using a large spoon, coat your meat with your flour/starch mixture. Heat your vegetable/peanut oil on medium heat, once hot, proceed to fry your chicken and shrimp. Place on a paper towel to drain extra oil.

Now for the sauce: Place your olive oil, dried chiles, bellpepper, garlic, and onion, into a small saucepan and saute for about 3 minutes or so. Reduce your heat. Now pour in your vinegar, wine, sugar, soy sauce, and if using it, your desired amount of crushed pepper. Bring to a simmer and GRADUALLY add in your 2 tablespoons of flour, stirring constantly. Once thickened, mix in your chicken and shrimp until evenly coated. Turn Heat off. Serve over jasmine rice or chow mein noodles. Garnish with fresh green onions.