Tasteful Thursday - General Tsao's Chicken

I have an awesome recipe to share with you guys- I am so so so excited.  Little did I know when I chose this recipe how delicious it would turn out.  Plus, it is a Weight Watchers recipe- SCORE!  So, let's just get on with it already, it's time for Tasteful Thursday.

If you want to play along, then here are the rules:

1. Post a recipe on your personal blog.
2. Come back to this post and leave a link to your recipe.
3. Visit everyone's recipe and leave some comment love if you feel so inclined.
4. It's that easy!

General Tsao’s Chicken

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cups canned chicken broth, reduced-sodium
• 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
• 1tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1/2 tp ground ginger
• 2 tsp peanut oil
• 2 medium scallions, chopped
• 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, or 1 dried chili pepper, minced
• 1 pound uncooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 2 cups cooked white rice, kept hot

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together broth, cornstarch, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar and ginger; set aside.
2. Heat oil in a wok or large skillet over medium-high heat. Add scallions, garlic and pepper and cook 2 minutes. Add chicken and cook until browned all over, about 5 minutes.
3. Add reserved sauce and simmer until sauce thickens and chicken is cooked through, about 3 minutes.
4. Serve chicken and sauce over rice. Yields about 1 cup of chicken and sauce and 1/2 cup of rice per serving.

Points per serving: 6

Modifications/Tips:

• I doubled the recipe for our family as I was positive that we would like it and want leftovers for the next day (I was right).
• I did not have peanut oil in my kitchen pantry so I substituted olive oil.
• I omitted the scallions as I did not want to hear my children whine about there being "green things" in their food, ha ha.
• I halved the red pepper flakes as I did not want it too spicy for the children- it turned out perfect for us.

Review:

This recipe rocked the house.  It did taste like General Tsao's Chicken, minus all the fatty breading.  My daughter asked for seconds, a sure sign that she enjoyed it.  To be honest, I wanted to pick up my plate and lick it clean- it was that good.  Sweetening the pot- it is a HEALTHY recipe.  We will most definitely be making this one again, and soon!

Comments

[melissa davis]

Easy Weeknight Indian

My son asked why we don't eat more beans, at dinner last night. Surprised and pleased at the same time, I promised him we would eat them more often, starting with the following night.

In planning, I took into consideration that Wednesday night is Lost night, and we have friends over for dinner after the kids go to bed. So the meal had to be interesting enough for company, but simple enough for kids. I chose an Indian theme, making a simple lentil dahl with carrots and onions, brown rice pilaf, sauteed spinach, raita, and papadums*, for fun.

I love this meal, as it is so easy, complete within one hour, and the flavors are so vibrant and out of the ordinary! I prepared the raita while the lentils and rice cooked and popped the papadums in the microwave for a few seconds, as the kids set the table.

Surprise your family and friends with a homemade Indian meal. It's healthy, inexpensive, and unusual. Break out of the old routine! Excite your tastebuds!

Many of the items for the meal are available at most major chain grocers, but the papadums* and mango pickle* may be a little more difficult. Asian or natural grocers usually carry these items.

Recipes:

Lentil Dahl

1 onion, diced
1 cup lentils, rinsed
2 carrots, diced
1 ½ cup broth
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp garlic
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp cumin

Saute onion in a splash of oil. Add other items once onions become translucent. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer, cover and cook until tender, about 30-40 minutes.

Brown Rice Pilaf

1 cup brown rice
1 ¾ cup water

Drizzle a small amount of oil into saucepan over medium heat. Add rice and toast until color changes slightly. Add water, bring to boil, reduce to simmer, cover and cook 45 minutes, or until water is absorbed.

Raita

1 cucumber, halved, seeded and diced into small bits
½ cup plain yogurt
¼ tsp mint
dash of salt

Combine and chill for 30 minutes before serving.
Notes:

*Papadums must be toasted/fried before eating. Frying in oil works but tend to make them curl. Microwave is quick and easy. Just pop them in, in a single layer, and cook until they puff, about 20 seconds(dependent on microwave).

*I like to serve my lentils with a mango or lime pickle, which is a prepared spicy condiment. A little goes a long way. It make simple lentils extraordinary!

[April]

OMG. This is like my favorite Asian dish EVER. Seriously.

Mine's boring this week, but I like it! Especially during my weight loss journey!

http://mylifeatthirty.blogspot.com/2009/03/recipe-carnival.html