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Peng Chang-kuei

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In this Chinese name, the family name is Peng.
Peng Chang-kuei
Born(1919-09-26)September 26, 1919[1]
Shaping-xiang, Changsha County, Hunan province, Republic of China
DiedNovember 30, 2016(2016-11-30) (aged 97)[1]
Taipei, Taiwan
OccupationChef of Hunan cuisine

Peng Chang-kuei (彭長貴, Xiang Chinese: [pən˩˧ tʂan˩˧ kwej˥];[2] September 26, 1919 – November 30, 2016[1]) was a chef specializing in Hunan cuisine. Throughout his culinary career, he was based in Hengyang, Chongqing, Taipei and New York City. He is credited with creating General Tso's chicken.

Early career

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Peng was born on September 26, 1919,[1] in Shaping-xiang, Changsha County, Hunan Province, Republic of China.

In 1933, Peng became the apprentice of Cao Jinchen (曹藎臣), the fourth-in-line personal chef of the late Tan Yankai, a Hunan statesman and the former Premier of the Republic of China.[3] Peng followed Cao Jinchen to Hengyang, Hunan, when Cao found his own restaurant Yuloudong (玉樓東).[3][4]

Following the 1938 Changsha fire, Peng and his family moved to Guiyang and finally to Chongqing, the wartime capital. His father and elder brother died on the way.[3] While working in the Hunan restaurant Xiaoxiang Jiudian (瀟湘酒店) in Chongqing,[4] he was offered to be the personal chef of Zeng Guangshan.[3] Zeng, then in her 80s, was a native of Hunan and the granddaughter of Zeng Guofan, the commander of the Xiang Army and the mother of Lt. General Yu Ta-wei [zh], the head of the Department of Weapons of the Ministry of War.[3][4] He was well connected to the senior figures of the Nationalist government while in Chongqing.[4][3][5] He cofounded Banyating (半雅亭) restaurant in Chongqing.[4]

After the Second Sino-Japanese War, he returned to Changsha. He was married for the first time (he remarried twice in Taiwan).[4] Before the communist takeover of Hunan in September 1949, he parted ways with his mother, wife, and children to follow the Kuomintang's retreat to Taiwan.[4]

Career in Taiwan and New York

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In 1952, Peng found the Hunan restaurant Yuloudong (玉樓東) in Taipei, but it was destroyed by fire a few years later.[4] In 1955, he was in charge of the staff restaurant of the Overseas Community Affairs Council of the Republic of China.[4] In 1956, he found two restaurants in Taipei, Tianchanglou (天長樓) and Peng Yuan (彭園).[4] In 1959, he was in charge of the staff restaurant of the Central Bank of the Republic of China.[4] In the 1960s, he cofounded the restaurant Dung Wan Gok (Cantonese: 東雲閣) in Hong Kong, but it was destroyed in a fire five days before its opening.[3]

Peng emigrated to New York City in 1973 and opened his own restaurant, Uncle Peng's Hunan Yuan, near the Headquarters of the United Nations.[6] General Tso's chicken featured in his New York restaurant.[1][6][7][8][9] He returned to Taiwan in the 1980s to open a chain of Peng Yuan restaurants, later opening a branch in his hometown of Changsha.[1][6] In 2017 four branches of the original restaurant were in operation as well as additional restaurants under a brand called Xiang Ba Lao targeted at a younger demographic. The restaurants use local chickens raised by small farmers (tuji chicken) rather than cheaper imported meat.[10]

General Tso's Chicken

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In 2008, Peng was interviewed by Jennifer 8. Lee for the documentary The Search for General Tso (2014).[11][12][13] In the documentary, Peng recalled in 1952 he was invited by the Republic of China Navy to be in charge of a three-day state banquet during Admiral Arthur W. Radford's visit of Taiwan.[12][13] Peng claimed Tso's chicken was served on Radford's menu on the third day.[12][13] According to U.S. diplomatic records, Radford's visit was during June 2–6, 1953.[14] An alternative story proposed by Taiwanese food writer Zhu Zhenfan (2009) claimed Chiang Ching-kuo, the son of President Chiang Kai-shek, paid a late visit to Peng's restaurant when Peng ran out of ingredients. Chiang was served an improvised dish, General Tso's chicken, by Peng.[15]

The earliest news account on Peng was on November 13, 1968, and 15-24 January 1969 under the identical news heading "彭長貴的故事", published by Economic Daily News (經濟日報) in Taipei.[16] It is not clear whether his stories about his invention of the Tso's chicken were featured in those 1968-1969 news report.

Personal life

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Peng was married twice. His first was in Taiwan in 1950 during which he had a son (b. 1953) but divorced shortly after. His married a second time in 1961 and had a son and a daughter.[4] There are claims he had seven children. Peng died from pneumonia in Taipei, Taiwan in November 2016.[7][17]

Notes

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Langer, Emily (2016-12-02). "Peng Chang-kuei, credited as creator of General Tso's chicken, dies at 97". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2018-01-07.
  2. ^ 鲍厚星; 崔振华; 沈若云; 伍云姬 (1999). 长沙方言研究. 湖南教育出版社. pp. 83, 85.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g 陳靜宜 (2009-03-01). "彭園掌門人彭長貴 靈感來了就是菜". 聯合報. Archived from the original on 2009-03-15.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l 林明德 (2016). "彭長貴與彭園湘菜". 料理·台灣. 29 (9). 中華飲食文化基金會. Archived from the original on 2023-03-20.
  5. ^ "Taiwanese chef who invented General Tso's chicken dies, aged 97". The Straits Times. 5 December 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  6. ^ a b c Grimes, William (2 December 2016). "Peng Chang-kuei, Chef Behind General Tso's Chicken, Dies at 98". New York Times. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  7. ^ a b Everington, Keoni (2 December 2016). "Inventor of General Tso's Chicken dies in Taipei at age 98". Taiwan News. Archived from the original on 20 February 2021. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  8. ^ Hanson, Hilary (2016-12-02). "Chef Peng Chang-kuei, General Tso's Chicken Inventor, Dies At 98". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2016-12-03.
  9. ^ "General Tso's Chicken creator, Chef Peng Chang-Kuei, is dead". NY Daily News. Retrieved 2016-12-03.
  10. ^ Crook, Steven; Hung, Katy Hui-wen (8 October 2018). A Culinary History of Taipei: Beyond Pork and Ponlai. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 140. ISBN 978-1-5381-0138-4. Retrieved 15 July 2025.
  11. ^ 林少予 (2008-02-27). "老美最熟的老中 左宗棠…雞". 聯合報.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  12. ^ a b c "「尋找左宗棠」李鏡找到彭長貴 解開「左宗雞」身世謎". World Journal. New York City. 2019-07-19.
  13. ^ a b c 姚舜 (2014-05-28). "96歲湘菜祖師爺 明再掌廚左宗棠雞". 中國時報.
  14. ^ Jones, Howard P. (1985). "The Chargé in the Republic of China (Jones) to the Department of State". In Mabon, David W.; Schwar, Harriet D. (eds.). Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, China and Japan, Volume XIV, Part 1 [June 18, 1953]. United States Government Printing Office. p. 206.
  15. ^ 朱振藩 (May 2009). "左宗棠雞人比驕". 歷史月刊: 124. Later compiled in 朱振藩 (December 2009). 食林外史. 麥田出版.
  16. ^ 蕭玫玲 (2016). 民國時期官府菜探討 －以譚延闓與譚祖任為例 [A Study of Officials’ Cuisine in Republican China—Cases of Tan Yan-kai and Tan Zu-ren] (Thesis). Taiwan: National Central University.
  17. ^ Bateman, Joshua (December 6, 2016). "Remembering the Creator of General Tso's Chicken". Time. The chef, who had two children from a marriage in mainland China and five from a second marriage in Taiwan, was 97 years old by Western reckoning.
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