General Tso Goes Vegan
By the Gracious Vegan
My husband is an omnivore who eats my vegan meals but sometimes longs for General Tso's Chicken (and indulges that longing at the local food cart pod). I worked very hard to come up with this plant-based version. Honestly, sometimes he likes it and sometimes he doesn’t—he’s a very picky eater. In the meantime I love it! This version is significantly healthier than the original—no meat, no deep-frying, no oil in the sauce, a whole-food-based chicken substitute, and dates instead of sugar in the sauce. A guilt-free, incredibly delicious General’s!
Makes 4 servings
Soak the soy curls. Add the dried soy curls to a medium bowl and cover with the liquids and mushroom powder. Let soak for about 10 minutes until the soy curls have softened. Once softened, drain the broth, squeeze the soy curls, and press them with a kitchen towel or paper towels to get out the excess broth.
3 rounded cups soy curls (dry) (about 6 ounces)
3 cups warm vegetable broth
1/4 cup soy sauce
Transfer the soy curls to the air fryer and distribute them in as much of a single layer as possible. Air fry the soy curls for 5 minutes at 400°F. They will be denser and harder. Do not over-cook to a dry, crispy state.
Make your rice. I prefer brown rice – follow rice package directions for 4 generous servings.
Get your vegetable ready. I prefer broccoli but feel free to experiment. Cut the crowns into florets. Boil or steam to your desired level of tenderness.
One large crown broccoli
Make the sauce. Combine these in a bullet/personal blender or with a whisk until mixture is smooth.
1 cup water
6 Tablespoons tomato paste
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
3 Tablespoons rice vinegar
4 Medjool soft dates or 1/4 cup date paste
1 Tablespoon hoisin sauce
1 Tablespoon Chinese roasted sesame paste (or sesame oil)
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1.5 teaspoons garlic powder
1 – 1.5 teaspoon chili paste (or more or less to taste)
Heat the sauce mixture in a medium-large skillet and stir until thickened and darker, about 2-3 minutes.
Bringing it all together. Add the soy curls to the sauce and stir well to coat with sauce. Transfer the soy curls to a serving dish or individual bowls, along with the rice and broccoli. Garnish with sesame seeds and scallions, if desired.
Soy curls and sauce
Rice and broccoli
1 Tablespoon roasted sesame seeds
4 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
Store leftovers in airtight containers (keep the rice and soy curl/sauce mixture separate). It will keep about a week in the refrigerator. The sauce and the sauce with soy curls can be frozen.
Timing: 60 minutes
Gluten-free