HISTORY!!! General Tso’s Chicken
Born in 1812 to a family of wealthy Hunan landowners, Tso quickly rose to prominence as a skilled military strategist for the Qing Dynasty. By 1850, General Tso was appointed by the Governer of Hunan province to defend the territory against the Taiping rebellion. Only given 5,000 soldiers, Tso found himself outmatched in the first battle, his forces cut down by half.
Tso rode onto the field of battle to size up the situation and realized that by the next sunset, his forces would be decimated. Instead, he came up with a diabolical plan. Gathering only the most spoiled chicken in his camp, and covering the taste with sugary sauce, he invited the Taiping leaders to feast with him
As they ate, Tso made it seem as though he was willing to negotiate, but after the meal decided against it and demanded battle.
The next day, the leaders of the rebellion were struck with explosive diarrhea and couldn’t command. Tso was similarly afflicted, but his experienced sub-commanders rode into to battle to carry out his detailed maneuvers and win the day.
In honor of this, General Tso’s Chicken was created. To this day, only Panda Express is committed to using the original recipe.
