General Tso's Chicken
Not as good as the stuff at Mandarin Garden, but it is a reasonable facsimile.

1 lb chicken
½ onion, coarsely chopped
1 cup steamed broccoli
1 tbs vegetable oil
¼ tsp sesame oil
½ tsp minced garlic
½ tsp minced ginger
½ tsp red pepper flakes
2 tbs rice vinegar
2 tbs rice wine (I use mirin)
3 tbs sugar
3 tbs soy sauce
¼ cup chicken broth
2 tsp cornstarch

In a medium-size bowl, combine the rice vinegar, rice wine, sugar, soy sauce, and chicken broth. Add the cornstarch and whisk vigorously to combine. Set aside.

Prepare the fry batter for the chicken:

¼ cup flour
¼ cup corn starch
½ tsp baking soda
5-6 tbs water

Heat up a wok or pot of cooking oil. Mix the fry batter and dip the chicken into the batter. Fry chicken pieces until they no longer bubble (much) and are deep golden brown and crispy. Drain excess oil from pieces and set aside.

In a wok, heat vegetable oil and sesame oil over high heat. Add garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Stir-fry quickly for about 30 seconds. Add the onions and fry until tender. Add sauce and stir until it thickens, about 1 minute. Add chicken and steamed broccoli. Toss to combine. Serve hot over white rice.

Crispy Honey Prawns
This is my best stab at P.F. Chang's cripsy honey shrimp. It is a work in progress... but still pretty darn fine right now. Use fresh, wild prawns if available.

1 lb fresh prawns (or shrimp), deveined
1 tbs baking soda
1 egg white
1 tsp corn starch
white pepper
salt

Peel the prawns, slit the back, and remove the veins. Transfer into a bowl of ice water. Add the baking soda to the water and lightly massage the prawns in the water. Allow to stand for 30 minutes; the baking soda will tenderize the prawns.

Remove the prawns from the ice water and rinse thoroughly (in cold water). Pat dry and transfer to a Ziploc bag. Lightly beat the egg white until frothy. Add egg white, corn starch, salt, and some white pepper to the Ziploc bag with the prawns. Massage bag to thoroughly coat the prawns with the egg white mixture. Let prawns marinate for 6-8 hours or in the refrigerator overnight.

vegetable oil
2 tbs corn starch
½ tsp baking soda
1 tbs mirin
2 tbs honey
1 tbs rice wine vinegar
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp minced garlic
red pepper, finely cubed (for garnish)
diced scallions (for garnish)

Sift together the corn starch and baking soda in a small bowl. Combine the mirin, honey, vinegar, soy sauce, and garlic in a separate bowl.

Add the vegetable oil to a wok and preheat the wok using medium heat until oil is hot.

Combine the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients together with the prawns. Immediately add prawns to wok and stir fry 2-3 minutes until prawns are just barely done. Garnish with the finely cubed red pepper and diced scallions; serve over steamed white rice.

Orange Chicken
The kids love this stuff. I made it today and there weren't any leftovers.

First make the orange sauce:

6 tbs orange juice (not from concentrate)
¼ cup chicken broth
1½ tbs soy sauce
1 tbs rice wine
1½ tsp rice vinegar
2 tbs brown sugar
¼ tsp white pepper powder
2 tsp corn starch
½ tsp sesame oil

Combine all ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.

Assemble the following ingredients:

½ lb chicken breast (cut into 1-3" long strips)
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1 cup scallions (cut into 1" long pieces)
1 tbs oil
½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

Finally, prepare the fry batter for the chicken:

4 tbs flour
4 tbs corn starch
½ tsp baking soda
5-6 tbs water

Heat up a wok or pot of cooking oil. Mix the fry batter and dip the chicken into the batter. Fry chicken pieces until they no longer bubble (much) and are deep golden brown and crispy. Drain excess oil from pieces and set aside.

In a wok, heat cooking oil over high heat. Add garlic and ginger and stir-fry quickly, maybe 25-30 seconds. Add orange zest and red pepper flakes. Give a few quick turns (another 30 seconds) and then add the sauce. Stir-fry until the sauce thickens, about 1 minute. Add chicken and give a few quick turns. Serve hot over white rice.

(Update Tue May 5 09:24:46 PDT 2009 // ⅛ -> ⅛)
(Update Mon May 18 15:12:34 PDT 2009 // changed the batter ingredients)

Mongolian Beef
Another favorite from Taiwan.

½ lb flank steak, sliced ¼" thick
1 tsp corn starch
1 tsp soy cause
1 tbs mirin (sweet cooking rice wine)

Combine the corn starch, soy sauce, and rice wine (mirin) in a ziploc plastic bag. Slice the beef and add to plastic bag, then close bag. Use fingers to massage the bag to thoroughly coat beef. Let stand for 20-30 minutes. While waiting for the beef to marinate, prepare the sauce:

2 tsp oyster sauce
2 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs water
1 tsp brown sugar
½ tsp corn starch
¼ tsp sesame oil
¼ tsp Maggi seasoning
¼ tsp white pepper

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, whisk well, and set aside.

1 bunch of green onions or 2 stalks leeks (sliced diagonally)
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger (or ½ tsp ginger powder)
2 tbs cooking oil

Combine oyster sauce, soy sauce, water, brown sugar, corn starch, and sesame oil. Whisk to combine and set aside.

Preheat a wok with 1 tbs of oil and stir fry the marinated beef until they are browned (e.g. "rare"). Dish out and set aside. Heat up the other 1 tbs of oil and saute the garlic and ginger until aromatic. Add the green onion or leeks and toss for about 1 minute. Add beef and stir-fry until the beef reaches a "medium" doneness, perhaps just 1 or 2 minutes. Add sauce. Do a few quick stirs (the sauce should thicken almost immediately). Add pepper to taste (and more sugar if desired) and then serve hot over steamed white rice.

Sweet and Sour Pork
This is one of Berkeley's favorite dinners. This makes a lot of sweet and sour pork (enough for us and guests... or for us with plenty of leftovers), so half the recipe if you just want enough for one meal.

First marinate the pork:

1 lb pork tenderloin
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp rice wine

Cut pork tenderloin into bite size cubes and place into a quart-sized Ziploc bag. Add soy sauce, corn flour, and rice wine to bag. Close bag and massage bag with fingers to thoroughly combine ingredients and coat pork pieces. Allow to marinate for 10 minutes.

Prepare the vegetables and pineapple:

1 red bell pepper, but into bite size pieces
1 green bell pepper, but into bite size pieces
about 6 scallions, white portions, cut into 1-inch lengths
4 slices of canned (or fresh) pineapple rings, cut into bite size pieces

Cut vegetables and pineapple, set aside.

Next, make the sweet and sour sauce:

6 tbs ketchup
6 tbs pineapple juice
1 tsp plum sauce
1½ tbs oyster sauce
½ teaspoon rice vinegar
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tbs corn starch

Combine the sweet and sour sauce ingredients well and set aside.

Finally, prepare the fry batter for the pork:

4 tbs flour
4 tbs corn starch
½ tsp baking soda
5-6 tbs water

When the pork is well-marinated, transfer the pork pieces into the batter. In a deep skillet, add in enough cooking oil for deep-frying. Once the oil is hot, deep fry the pork pieces until they no longer bubble (much) and are deep golden brown and crispy. Dish out and drain on paper towels.

Heat up a wok and add in some cooking oil and 1 clove of minced garlic. Stir fry garlic until light brown, then add bell peppers and pineapple. Cook until peppers are tender but still slightly crisp. Add the scallions and stir-fry mixture for one minute more. Add in the sweet and sour sauce. As soon as the sauce thickens, transfer the pork into the wok and stir well with the sauce. Serve over hot steamed rice.

(Update Mon May 18 15:12:34 PDT 2009 // changed the batter ingredients)