Today’s Exercise: 32 minutes on Wii Fit, 14,500 steps
Many people who cook on a regular basis have a certain signature dish which they break out every now and then when they need a sure-fire success. For my mum this is her succulent roast chicken, for my mate Corinne it’s chocolate cake and for my culinary-minded mate Lottie it’s her lasagna. As I mentioned in a previous entry for the delicious sesame chicken my signature dish would have to be General Tso’s Chicken.
This first time I made this was 3-4 years ago and is the dish that truly ignited my love of cooking. I chose to investigate it for the dual reason of me loving Chinese takeout and the fact that it has an interesting name. In trying to perfect this dish originally it went through a series of modifications until I thought it tasted perfect… then I went to New York and tried it there to find my version was significantly different in taste. Ah well. For the most part it stuck to the original idea of a recipe and so I saw it as a variation.
Upon starting this blog I wanted to cook this very quickly so I went onto my favourite calorie calculator and did some number crunching. After the original shock dissipated I decided that I would do a complete overhaul to make it more healthy and so I could post it on here. By doing so I have added a vegetable and removed the bit where I quasi-deep-fryed the chicken (now it is just stir-fried). I also increased the amount of soy sauce and vinegar whilst introducing a thickening agent so that this becomes more of a sauce reminiscent of the takeouts that I know and love.
Ingredients (serves 3)
- 1 tbsp groundnut oil
- 2 chicken breasts, cut into 8-10 pieces
- 150ml light soy sauce
- 150ml water
- 150ml rice vinegar
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- thumb-sized piece of ginger, minced
- 1/2 tbsp cornflour
- 2 red chillis, de-seeded, de-membraned and finely chopped
Whisk the soy sauce, vinegar, water, cornflour, garlic and ginger to make the sauce and then set aside.
Heat the groundnut oil in a wok and then as it begins to smoke/shimmer add the chicken. Stir-fry the chicken for 5 minutes to make sure it is cooked through. Now add the beansprouts and cook further for 1 minute. When this is done remove from the wok and set aside.
Wipe the wok clean and place back on the heat. To this add the sauce and the chilli and leave to warm for 30 seconds. Now reintroduce the chicken and beansprouts and simmer for 5-10 minutes (depending on the desired thickness). Serve with rice.
Verdict: As a version that is both lower in calories and fat I noticed no discernible difference in the taste. If anything the addition of the beansprouts, to include a vegetable as well as bulking it out, was a large improvement on my original.
To those who are going to make this I do need to warn you that the taste is slightly unusual and that on the first few bites you may not be too sure about it. But after a while it grows on you and begin to love it, or at least that’s what happened with me and my mum. The great thing too is that this would go well with other meats or with prawns, which I’ll be trying later. So if you see some asian/chinese side-dishes coming your way soon you know why.
Calorie Count: 245 per serving
