General Tso's Chicken

Ingredients

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (or 400 grams of chicken thighs), chopped into bite-size pieces
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 scallions, chopped
• 2T soy sauce
• 2T sugar
• ¼ lemon or lime
• 1T sesame oil
• ½ cup corn starch (added in increments, just in case you don't need that much)
• ½ cup ketchup
• handful of dried chilies, chopped coarsely
• salt and pepper to taste
• vegetable oil for pan-frying the chicken

To Prepare

1. Heat a pan on medium. Mix the soy sauce and sugar, then pour into the pan and stir. Remove from heat once the sugar has dissolved and the sauce thickened. Set aside and wash the pan.
2. Heat sesame oil in the pan until hot. Add the garlic, white scallion bottoms, and dried chilies. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until fragrant.
3. Add the ketchup, soy glaze, and squeeze in the lemon or lime. Stir thoroughly to combine and set aside in a large bowl. Wash the pan.
4. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Toss with cornstarch to thoroughly coat. Heat pan with vegetable oil until the oil is hot. Add the chicken in a single layer. Cook, turning occasionally, 7 to 9 minutes, or until browned on both sides and cooked through. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to reduce the oil.
5. Transfer chicken to the bowl of sauce and toss to thoroughly coat.

Serve with steamed rice. Consider frying thinly-sliced garlic until golden brown and serving as a garnish on the chicken.