When you are craving General Tso’s Chicken, you need this recipe. Simple to make, with all the flavor, this General Tso Chicken recipe is sure to make you happy. Make it whenever the craving hits.
Love Chinese takeout, you will also love this Instant Pot Beef Stir Fry Recipe.
Instant Pot General Tso’s Chicken Recipe
I love making Chinese food at home. Since I am always getting a craving for one dish or another, I have been on a mission to remake my favorite Chinese food recipes. Easy Chicken Fried Rice with Yum Yum Sauce, Instant Pot Orange Chicken, and Firecracker Chicken in the Instant Pot are a few of my favorites.
Ingredients
- Chicken thighs
- Egg
- Flour
- Corn flour
- Vegetable oil
- Ginger
- Garlic
- Red chili flakes
- Rice vinegar
- Soy sauce
- Hoisin sauce
- Water
- Brown sugar
- Cornstarch
- Water
How to Make Instant Pot General Tso’s Chicken
Cut the chicken into 3-4 inch chunks.
In one small bowl add the flour and cornflour and mix to combine. In another bowl, add the eggs and beat them.
Dip the 5-6 pieces of chicken into the egg mixture and then into the flour mixture.
Place the chicken on a baking pan that has been lined with parchment paper. Set it aside until the pan is full.
Continue the chicken until it is all coated.
Once the chicken is coated, turn on the saute function on the Instant Pot.
Once the Instant Pot reads hot, add the oil and once the oil is hot, add the chicken. Cooking a few pieces at a time, saute the chicken for 2-3 minutes, turning the chicken a few times to evenly cook the chicken.
Place on a baking pan top with parchment paper and set it to the side.
Once the chicken is golden, add the rest of the ingredients to to the Instant Pot and stir well to combine.
Set the Instant Pot to the Poultry function and then set the time to 5 minutes.
Do a 10 minute natural release and then turn off the heat.
Remove the lid and then stir gently.
Make the corn starch slurry by combining water and cornstarch and mix it until there are no lumps.
Set the heat to saute and add the cornstarch slurry.
Cook for 5 minutes, turn the pot off and let the General Tso Chicken stand for 5 minutes.
What is in General Tso’s Sauce?
When making the General Tso sauce, you are using the vegetable oil that is used to cook the chicken combined with ginger, garlic, red pepper flakes, rice vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, brown sugar, and water. These ingredients combine to make a sauce with an incredible flavor. Then after it is done cooking, a cornstarch slurry is added to thicken the sauce to give the classic sticky sauce associated with General Tso chicken.
Are Chicken Breasts and Chicken Thighs Interchangeable in This?
If you prefer to use chicken breast in this recipe instead of using chicken thighs you can make the switch. Chicken thighs offer more flavor, in general, because of the higher fat content, but this recipe is so packed with flavor, you can change it to chicken breast to make this a lighter dish.
Instant Pot General Tso's Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken thighs cut into 2-3 inch chunks
- 2-3 eggs beaten
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup corn flour
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp. Minced ginger
- 1 tbsp. minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon red chili flakes
- 6 tbsp. rice vinegar
- 6 tbsp. soy sauce
- 6 tsp. hoisin sauce
- 1/3 cup water
- 3 tbsp. brown sugar
Cornstarch Slurry:
- 2 tbsp. cornstarch
- 3 tbsp. water
Instructions
- Start by cutting the chicken into 3-4 inch chunks.
- In a small bowl add your flour and corn flour mixto combine.
- In another small bowl add your beaten eggs.
- Take your chicken 5-6 pieces at a time, dip them in the egg mixture
- first then into the flour mixture.
- Place on a baking pan top with parchment paper and set to the side.
- Repeat steps until all chicken has been coated.
- Press Sauté on your Instant Pot-> click on high.
- Wait for the Instant Pot to read HOT.
- Add the oil to the Instant Pot, wait one minute for the oil to heat up and add the chicken.
- Sauté for 2-3 minutes, turn your chicken over to ensure even cooking.
- Do this for a few times.
- Continue to cook the chicken until it just starts to get golden.
- Add the rest of the ingredients to the Instant pot: ginger, garlic, red pepper flakes, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar and water.
- Stir well to combine.
- Close lid, select the Poultry function and adjust the time to 5 minutes.
- Then use a 10 minute Natural Release.
- Turn off the heat.
- Open the lid.
- Gently stir to combine.
- Select Saute’ on the Instant Pot
- Add your cornstarch slurry to the Instant Pot.
- Cook for 5 minutes.
- Turn your Instant pot off, let the General Tso Chicken stand for 5-7 minutes
- Serve
Cornstarch Slurry:
- In a small bowl combine the cornstarch with the water, whisk until all combined with no lumps.
Last Step:
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3 comments on “Instant Pot General Tso’s Chicken Recipe”
Great recipe. Tasted so good and everyone loved it! It was probably more like 30 mins of prep. I also think it needed extra water because it started to burn/stick to the bottom. I added broccoli and then thought I needed a bit more spice so I added a tbs of siracha.
Excellent – I loved it and I got rave reviews!
This was delicious, however, more water is needed bc mine tended to burn. A little on the spicy side. Takes more than ten minutes prep time alo.