General Tso’s Chicken
with broccoli / farro

Name: General Tso’s Chicken
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 3/4 cup Farro, semi-pearled / husked and uncooked; 12 oz Broccoli, chopped; 1 Bell peppers, red, diced; 2 cloves Garlic, chopped; 1 tsp Ginger (opt), grated; 1/2 cup Stock, any type; 1/4 cup Soy sauce, low-sodium; 2 Tbsp Brown sugar; 2 Tbsp Vinegar, rice; 1 tsp Red pepper flakes (use less if you prefer less spice); 1 tsp Oil, toasted sesame; 1 lb Chicken breasts, boneless and skinless, cubed; 1 Tbsp + 1 Tbsp Cornstarch; 2 Tbsp Water; 2 Tbsp + 1 Tbsp Oil, cooking

Active: 30 min Total: 30 min

Original GF Paleo Vegetarian

This was a popular meal in 2018, but we've used our community members' feedback to make it even better! A thicker sauce and added color / flavor from red bell peppers make this quick meal a delicious (and much healthier) variation on the take-out classic.
Smarts: If you cooked farro earlier in the week, this meal is great served over that hearty grain. It can, of course, also be served over rice.

Ingredients

Metric

Servings:

General Tso’s Chicken with Farro:

Farro, semi-pearled / husked and uncooked - 3/4 cup
Broccoli - 12 oz , chopped
Bell peppers, red - 1 , diced
Garlic - 2 cloves , chopped
Ginger (opt) - 1 tsp , grated
Stock, any type - 1/2 cup
Soy sauce, low-sodium - 1/4 cup
Brown sugar - 2 Tbsp
Vinegar, rice - 2 Tbsp
Red pepper flakes - 1 tsp (use less if you prefer less spice)
Oil, toasted sesame - 1 tsp
Chicken breasts, boneless and skinless - 1 lb , cubed
Cornstarch - 1 Tbsp + 1 Tbsp
Water - 2 Tbsp
Oil, cooking - 2 Tbsp + 1 Tbsp

Prep

Cook farro - (Skip if made ahead for Tuesday.) Bring a saucepan of water to boil. Give it a generous sprinkle of salt and add farro. If you bought semi-pearled or husked farro, it should take about 25 minutes to cook until al dente, tender but not soggy. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
Broccoli / Bell peppers / Garlic / Ginger - Combine broccoli and bell peppers in one container. Store garlic and ginger in another container. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
Make sauce - Combine stock, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, brown sugar, vinegar, red pepper flakes, and sesame oil. (Note: Use more or less red pepper flakes depending on how much spice you’d like.) (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
Chicken - Cube chicken. Tenderize with a fork and season with some salt and pepper. Toss with first part of cornstarch. (Can be done 1 day ahead)
Make slurry - Whisk together second part of cornstarch and water.

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Make

Heat a wok or skillet with first part of cooking oil over medium heat. Add chicken and saute until chicken is nearly cooked through (it will finish cooking in the sauce), 4 to 5 minutes. Set chicken aside.
Add second part of cooking oil to pan and increase heat to medium-high. Add broccoli and bell peppers. Saute until nearly tender, 3 to 4 minutes (at this point, the vegetables will still have a bit of crunch; if you’d like them more tender, add a splash of water and continue to saute until cooked to your liking).
Add chicken back to pan and pour sauce over top.
When sauce begins to simmer, give cornstarch slurry a stir and add it to sauce.
Cook everything together, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens and coats chicken and vegetables, ~2 minutes more.
If farro was made ahead, reheat in the microwave.
Serve chicken and vegetables over farro. Enjoy!

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