Modified General Tso's Chicken

Ingredients

170 gr chicken legs
475 ml soya oil
5 ml sesame oil
1 water chestnut flour
6 gr ginger root
2 scallions
8 gr garlic
6 gr orange
26 gr sugar
45 ml soy sauce
7 ml vinegar
24 gr cornstarch
60 ml chicken stock
1 egg

Instructions

This recipe is a combination of the best parts of many other General Tso's Chicken recipes I have seen. I use this recipe on a regular basis. I have used de-boned chicken thighs with good success. Have made it using orange or lemon peel and liked it with either. Have used small Vidalia onion in place of scallions also. Be careful when using the water chestnut flour, it doesn't brown as much as regular flour, so don't overcook. The sauce will make the dish darker. I tried using a deep fryer for cooking the chicken without success. The chicken kept sticking to the fryer basket. Have found that using a wok and cooking about 5 pieces of chicken at a time works better for me. Cut the chicken into pieces no larger than 3 cm square. Prepare marinade by combining egg white, cornstarch, and 1 tablespoon soy sauce in a large bowl. Add chicken pieces and set aside for two hours. In a deep pot, heat the oil until it reaches 350 degrees. Dredge marinated chicken pieces in water chestnut powder to coat. In a basket, or with a slotted spoon, lower several marinated chicken pieces into the fat. Fry about one or two minutes or until the chicken becomes crisp; test for doneness before completing the batch. Continue until all pieces have been fried. Set oil and cooked chicken pieces aside. In a wok, on high heat, reheat two tablespoons of the reserved oil. Add prepared ginger, scallions, garlic, chili peppers, and orange or lemon peel. Stir to prevent burning. Add the fried chicken and stir quickly.Add sugar, soy sauce, vinegar and cornstarch mixed with chicken stock. Remove from the heat and stir sesame oil into the sauce. Spoon the mixture on to a hot platter and serve immediately with steamed rice. Serves 4.