The Wednesday Night Special

Remember I promised a surprise for you? Well here it is! I thought it would be fun to feature some dinner ideas on Wednesdays. I am not sure how it will work, so please bear with me! I do know that my Monday post generally drains me of all my creative energy, so chances are, there will not be that much witty text on the Wednesday post- just straight up food! Hope you guys enjoy this new feature, and please leave feedback in the comments- I love to hear from everyone. 

Now, onto more serious business- dinner! 

Disclaimer: Please note that we generally do not have such complicated and impressive dinners such as the one you shall see as soon as you scroll down, if you haven't already. But, since I greatly enjoy making you fall out of your chair with wonder and awe, I decided to kick off "Wednesday Night Specials" with something extra yummy. This is really not as hard as it looks, and is completely worth the four pots and one bowl you are about to use (hence;wash)....

CopyCat General Tsao

Adapted from www.copykat.com

Sauce

1/4 C. Cornstarch
1 C. Water
1 1/2 tsp. minced fresh Garlic or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp. minced fresh Ginger or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 C. Sugar
1/2 C. Soy Sauce
1/4 C. White Vinegar
1/4 C. Sherry (you can skip this, I don't use it)
1 cup chicken soup broth* or 1 cup  hot water + 2 tablespoons soup mix

1/4-1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, depending on how spice you want the sauce

Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. When you are ready to cook it ( you should cook it right before you are ready to serve) heat over a medium fire, and bring to a boil. Boil for 2-3 minutes, until the sauce thickens. 

Chicken

3 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken, cut into small chunks
1/4 C. Soy Sauce
1 egg, beaten
1 C. Cornstarch
2 C. sliced Green Onions (optional)

Mix chicken and soy sauce in a large bowl. Stir in egg. Add cornstarch, and mix until chicken pieces are coated. (It doesn't look that pretty at this point.) If you are not ready to serve it yet, you can put it in the refrigerator until you are ready. When you are ready, heat about 1 1/2 cups oil in a small sauce pan. (You can test to see if the oil is ready by putting a piece of chicken in. If it bubbles immediately , its ready. Or you can be super fancy and use a thermometer, and heat the oil to 350°.) Deep fry 7 or 8 chicken pieces at a time until chicken pieces are crispy (less than 2 minutes). Drain on paper towels. Repeat until all chicken chunks are fried.

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan or wok. Add in 1 sliced onion ( not diced) and 1 red pepper cut into strips. Saute about 3-4 minutes and add approximately 1 cup broccoli florets. Saute another 3-4 minutes, and then turn off flame. ( You can do this earlier in the day and reheat when you are ready to eat.)

Serve with steamed rice. ( Layer rice, vegetables, chicken then sauce. Or you can mix the vegetables and chicken into the sauce, and then serve over rice. )

* Whenever I have leftover chicken soup, I measure out 1 cup increments, and freeze them in  sandwich size ziploc bags. This way I have it all ready for recipes like these.