General Tso Beef

This Chinese-inspired recipe for General Tso Beef is perfect for those who love a meal with sweet, savory, and spicy flavors.

While I love eating out and skipping the clean up, I love using fresh ingredients, controlling my sugar intake and customizing flavors to my preference so much more! And the fact that it is a 30 minute, one pan dish makes this a recipe you will want to repeat often!

I highly recommend these recipes that are also quick and full of flavor:

• General Tso's Shrimp
• Hot and Spicy Beef
• Hot and Spicy Chicken
• Spicy chicken Stir Fry
• Teriyaki Beef and Broccoli
• Mongolian Pork

Ingredients

You will need the following ingredients to make this recipe. Full directions are in the recipe card below:

For low carb variations: use Arrowroot powder instead of cornstarch. Use sugar free sweet chili sauce (I prefer G Hughes brand). Also use a brown sugar substitute such as Besti or Swerve.

What is General Tso Sauce made of?

Typically, the sauce has vinegar, a sweetener, some spiciness, such as chili peppers, chili paste, red pepper flakes. It also has soy sauce, garlic and a thickener, such as cornstarch or Arrowroot.

For General Tso chicken, pork or shrimp, these ingredients would most likely remain the same but chicken broth may be added for the chicken version. I've made the shrimp version with vegetable broth. For this beef version, we are adding a low sodium beef broth.

How spicy is General Tso sauce?

If you want the recipe to be a bit less spicy then either leave out or lessen the amount of chili paste or chili peppers. However, it is not a "make your eyes water" type of spiciness and the added sugar and sweet chili sauce balances the sauce nicely.

Always taste the sauce before adding into the stir fried beef and vegetables and adjust sweetness and spices as preferred.

Ingredient Variations

• You can use flank steak instead of top sirloin. I wouldn't recommend a tougher cut of meat because it isn't going to simmer very long and therefore won't soften much.
• If you don't have sweet chili sauce, use regular chili sauce and add a bit more sweetener.
• 1-2 teaspoons of garlic powder can be substituted for fresh garlic cloves.
• In a pinch, packaged brown gravy mix can be subbed for the beef broth. Just use half a package so it is diluted.
• Substitute ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes for the chili paste or chili oil.

How to make General Tso Beef

Step 1: Heat oil in skillet or wok. Stir fry the green beans and red peppers until softened, about 3 minutes.

Step 2: Add the chili peppers and chives. Stir 1-2 minutes. Cut open a few chili peppers to release the seeds if you like more spiciness. Remove vegetables to a plate.

Step 3: Stir cornstarch, salt and pepper and combine with sliced beef. Add more oil and stir fry the coated beef for 2-3 minutes until lightly browned.

Step 4: Stir sauce ingredients together to combine and taste. Adjust for sweetness or spiciness. Add more broth if too spicy. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes to thicken sauce.

Step 5: Add back the vegetables and stir over medium heat to heat through. Remove chili peppers before serving.

Recipe Tips

• To make slicing the beef a bit easier, you can freeze it for 20 minutes.
• Thinly slice the meat on the diagonal, against the grain.
• Make sure the beef has some room in the skillet or wok. You want it to lightly brown instead of steam if too crowded. Cook the meat in two batches if needed.

What to serve with General Tso Beef?

For this recipe, green beans and red pepper are cooked in the sauce with the beef. And we serve it over rice, cauliflower rice for me.

You can also serve this meal with:

If you tried this General Tso Beef and enjoyed it, I'd love if you gave it a 5 star rating. This tells me what you like and want to see more of. Thank you!

Nutrition is estimated from Nutrifox.com