Peng Chang-kuei
Peng Chang-kuei (; 1919–2016) was a Taiwanese chef who is sometimes credited with being the creator of General Tso's chicken, a popular Chinese dish in Western countries. Early life. Peng was born on September 26, 1919, in Changsha, Hunan Province in the Republic of China. He cooked for the Nationalist government, serving as personal chef to Chiang Kai-shek, before fleeing to Taiwan in 1949. Culinary career. Peng first prepared his new Hunanese dish of chicken and chilies, naming it after General Zuo Zongtang, at a state banquet during the First Taiwan Strait Crisis. Peng then  served General Tso's chicken in his restaurants in Taipei. When Hunanese restaurants opened in New York City in 1972, they served an adapted version of General Tso's chicken. Peng emigrated to New York City in 1973 and opened his own restaurant, Uncle Peng's Hunan Yuan, near the United Nations. He returned to Taiwan in the 1980s to open a chain of Peng Yuan restaurants, later opening a branch in his hometown of Changsha. Personal. Peng married three times and had seven children. He died from pneumonia in Taipei, Taiwan in November 2016.