# General Tso is Dead at 98 in Taipei.... **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 2, 2016, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669 "2016-12-02T21:20:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2016, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/1 "2016-12-02T21:20:04Z")
Well, ok, the inventor of "General Tso’s Chicken is dead at 98 in Taipei. [Cite.](http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3042881) Often I wondered the story behind that dish. Was it a spicy food contest between military men? Was the wine poisoned (hence the extra hot & spicy)? and now I know (from the article): > [@](#): > > After three days, he had served the guests most of his repertoire of dishes, so to try and mix things up a bit, he decided to chop some chicken into big chunks, fry it to a golden hue and then added a different combination of sauce and seasoning to create a new dish. > > The admiral was so impressed with the dish that he asked Peng what it was called, he thought quickly on his feet and said “General Tso’s Chicken” (左宗棠雞). Good. Lord. 2016 really has sucked, hasn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2016, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/2 "2016-12-02T22:19:04Z")
General Tso is also the commonly used name for Zuo Zongtang who was a military leader in the Qing Dynasty. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2016, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/3 "2016-12-02T22:24:53Z")
The documentary mentioned in the article, “The Search for General Tso” is available to stream on Netflix. Or at least it was as of last summer when I watched it. Good film. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2016, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/4 "2016-12-02T23:00:23Z")
Extra hot and spicy? Are we taking about the same dish? I find it to be only slightly spicier than sweet & sour chicken. Nothing even resembling hot. I still love it, though. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2016, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/5 "2016-12-02T23:05:58Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Extra hot and spicy? Are we taking about the same dish? I find it to be only slightly spicier than sweet & sour chicken. Nothing even resembling hot. > > I still love it, though. Yeah, it’s just sweet and sour chicken with some garlic and chile added. That’s why it’s better. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2016, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/6 "2016-12-02T23:33:06Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > The documentary mentioned in the article, “The Search for General Tso” is available to stream on Netflix. Or at least it was as of last summer when I watched it. Good film. I also saw it and enjoyed it. It was about more than just food. It talks about the whole Chinese immigrant experience, why so many open restaurants, and how what we call “Chinese food” of course is not really what is eaten in China. When they showed chef Peng our version of General Tso’s Chicken he got very upset. He did not at all care for the addition of brocolli! ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/7 "2016-12-03T00:04:42Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Extra hot and spicy? Are we taking about the same dish? I find it to be only slightly spicier than sweet & sour chicken. Nothing even resembling hot. > > I still love it, though. You have to ask for it “fire-tongue”. …and even then its only REALLY good when “The Good Chef” is working that night… ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/8 "2016-12-03T00:09:33Z")
First, the creator of the Big Mac dies, then the creator of Gen. Tso’s chicken. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/9 "2016-12-03T00:09:44Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > The documentary mentioned in the article, “The Search for General Tso” is available to stream on Netflix. Or at least it was as of last summer when I watched it. Good film. It’s still there; I think I’ll watch it tonight. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/10 "2016-12-03T00:20:33Z")
I always thought the dish was named by Tso’s enemies … a contraction of “General Tso is chicken.” ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/11 "2016-12-03T01:30:30Z")
> [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > You have to ask for it “fire-tongue”. > …and even then its only REALLY good when “The Good Chef” is working that night… And the little peppers are not meant to be eaten, or get anywhere near your mouth. And for God’s sake do NOT rub your eyes after handling one. ---
**Author:** ![harmonicamoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/65b543/32.png) [@harmonicamoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmonicamoon)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/12 "2016-12-03T02:10:16Z")
I hope he didn’t take the recipe with him. I love that dish! ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/13 "2016-12-03T02:24:23Z")
> [@harmonicamoon](#): > > I hope he didn’t take the recipe with him. > > I love that dish! If you’re talking about the dish that is served in the US, I don’t think that there’s any danger of the recipe being lost. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/14 "2016-12-03T10:46:22Z")
That reminds me of one of the really stupid things that go through my head. I end up at a food court Chinese place for lunch at work fairly often. I at some point I started listening to other people make their order for General Sew/Sow/Toe/Tao/Cho/Chao/Tcho/Tchao/Tsoe/Tsao/Zo/Zow 's Chicken(or any of the other ways people pronounce it. I think my favorite s the people who skip the whole name issue and just order “General Chicken” Which gives me the smartass in me a barely resistible temptation to follow with an order for “Unspecified Pork”,“Generic Beef” and “Vague Vegtables” ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/15 "2016-12-03T14:02:07Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > The documentary mentioned in the article, “The Search for General Tso” is available to stream on Netflix. Or at least it was as of last summer when I watched it. Good film. > [@davidm](#): > > I also saw it and enjoyed it. It was about more than just food. It talks about the whole Chinese immigrant experience, why so many open restaurants, and how what we call “Chinese food” of course is not really what is eaten in China. > > When they showed chef Peng our version of General Tso’s Chicken he got very upset. He did not at all care for the addition of brocolli! Just finished watching thanks to these posts. Excellent documentary. Was a little disappointed they didn’t touch on the Cajun-Chinese stir fry though. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/16 "2016-12-03T14:10:40Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > And the little peppers are not meant to be eaten, or get anywhere near your mouth. And for God’s sake do NOT rub your eyes after handling one. You mean the crunchy red ones…? They’re Great…! They’re like a little firework that you’ll need a sip of wine after eating. They also seem to have useful gastrointestinal properties that may help to prevent bloating, but as I have no science or cite to back up that claim, I won’t go into it further. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2016, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/17 "2016-12-03T15:27:39Z")
> [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > You mean the crunchy red ones…? They’re Great…! They’re like a little firework that you’ll need a sip of wine after eating. > > They also seem to have useful gastrointestinal properties that may help to prevent bloating, but as I have no science or cite to back up that claim, I won’t go into it further. 😃 I actually had the manager (I think he was the manager) of a restaurant come over and tell us specifically that they were not to be eaten. (This was a nice restaurant, not one of those fast food takeout / delivery places.) Maybe one of his customers had a bad experience with choking or whatever. Anyway, I touched one to the tip of my tongue one time and it was not an enjoyable experience. I see food as something to be enjoyed, not a masochistic test of machismo. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2016, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/18 "2016-12-04T01:27:15Z")
> [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > Well, ok, the inventor of "General Tso’s Chicken is dead at 98 in Taipei. > > [Cite.](http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3042881) > > Often I wondered the story behind that dish. Was it a spicy food contest between military men? Was the wine poisoned (hence the extra hot & spicy)? > > and now I know (from the article) As Seinfeld might say, “And yet… no mention of the broccoli…” Dennis ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2016, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/19 "2016-12-04T02:22:24Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > I see food as something to be enjoyed, not a masochistic test of machismo. 😛 I don’t always eat them, but sometimes I do. Its a personal taste thing like liver and onions… or any entree with a horrifically sour lemon sauce… ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2016, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669/20 "2016-12-04T14:19:00Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > … > I end up at a food court Chinese place for lunch at work fairly often. > … > Which gives me the smartass in me a barely resistible temptation to follow with an order for “Unspecified Pork”,“Generic Beef” and “Vague Vegtables” I often hear it called “the General’s Chicken”. At a joint like that you’re getting Unspecified Pork, Generic Beef, and Vague Vegetables no matter what you order. The sauce may change, but the main ingredients remain mostly mystery stuff regardless. 🙂 > [@davidm](#): > > And the little peppers are not meant to be eaten, or get anywhere near your mouth. And for God’s sake do NOT rub your eyes after handling one. > [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > You mean the crunchy red ones…? They’re Great…! They’re like a little firework that you’ll need a sip of wine after eating. > … > [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > I don’t always eat them, but sometimes I do. Its a personal taste thing like liver and onions… or any entree with a horrifically sour lemon sauce… The best GT chicken is about 1 dried red pepper pod per 4 hunks 'o chicken. Eat every pod; they’re delicious. Be sure to chew the seeds properly for the full effect. Damn. I know what’s for lunch now. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/general-tso-is-dead-at-98-in-taipei/773669.md?page=2)