Orange Chicken Recipe

My Chinese Orange Chicken is sticky, sweet and tangy. Im going to show you how to get succulent crispy chicken pieces and plenty of that delicious orange sauce. Its easy to make at home, and will be ready for your family in 20 minutes! No need to go out and get that takeaway – the kids are going to be waiting at the table, forks ready to devour the lot!

I can see why its one of the most popular dishes on the Panda Express menu!

Being in the UK, we dont actually have Panda Express, and you rarely see Orange Chicken featured on the menus of our Chinese restaurants. I remember it well from our US holidays though and I felt I had to recreate it at home.

So until Panda Express makes it over the water (and probably even after it it does!), Im going to continue to cook up my own copycat Panda Express orange chicken!

Chinese Orange Chicken

Chinese Orange Chicken that is way better than take-out!

Prep: 15min

Total: 35min

Ingredients:

• 4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (cut into bite-size pieces)
• 3 Eggs (whisked)
• 1/3 cup Cornstarch
• 1/3 cup Flour
• Salt
• Oil (for frying)
• 1 cup Orange Juice
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar (or White Vinegar)
• 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce (use tamari for a gluten-free dish)
• 1/4 teaspoon Ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder (or 2 garlic cloves, finely diced)
• 1/2 teaspoon Red Chili Flakes
• Orange Zest (from 1 orange)
• 1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
• Green Onions
• Orange Zest

Instruction:

1. To make orange sauce:
2. In a medium pot, add orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and red chili flakes. Heat for 3 minutes.
3. In a small bowl, whisk 1 Tablespoon of cornstarch with 2 Tablespoons of water to form a paste. Add to orange sauce and whisk together. Continue to cook for 5 minutes, until the mixture begins to thicken. Once the sauce is thickened, remove from heat and add orange zest.
4. To make chicken:
5. Place flour and cornstarch in a shallow dish or pie plate. Add a generous pinch of salt. Stir.
6. Whisk eggs in shallow dish.
7. Dip chicken pieces in egg mixture and then flour mixture. Place on plate.
8. Heat 2 -3 inches of oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Using a thermometer, watch for it to reach 350 degrees.
9. Working in batches, cook several chicken pieces at a time. Cook for 2 – 3 minutes, turning often until golden brown. Place chicken on a paper-towel-lined plate. Repeat.
10. Toss chicken with orange sauce. You may reserve some of the sauce to place on rice. Serve it with a sprinkling of green onion and orange zest, if so desired.

Orange Chicken

Total: 0 50min0

Yield: 4 servings

Serving Size: 1 of 4 servings

Nutrition Facts: servingSize 1 of 4 servings, calories 878, Fat 75g, Saturated Fat 16g, Carbohydrate 15g, Fiber 0g, Sugar 6g, Protein 36g, Cholesterol 189mg, Sodium 462mg

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 4 egg whites
• 4 boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1/2 cup orange juice (I used Simply Orange)
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 packed tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
• Dash salt
• Dash crushed red pepper
• 1 clove garlic, pressed
• A little grated or minced ginger
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• Vegetable or peanut oil, for frying

Instruction:

1. For the chicken: In a large bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and egg whites with a fork until almost frothy, about 1 minute. Add the chicken to the mixture and allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes.
2. For the sauce: Meanwhile, put the orange juice, soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, sesame oil, salt, crushed red pepper, garlic and ginger in a small nonstick skillet and whisk. Heat until bubbling and starting to thicken, about 5 minutes.
3. Whisk together the cornstarch and 1/4 cup water in a small bowl and add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the cornstarch slurry to the sauce. Mix in and thicken for 1 minute.
4. Heat about 2 inches of vegetable oil in a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven until a deep-fry thermometer inserted in the oil registers 350 degrees F. Carefully drop the chicken into the oil and move it around, flipping gently, until golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Let the pieces drain on a plate lined with paper towels for 2 to 3 minutes. Then drop them back into the oil for 1 minute to really solidify the coating.
5. Toss the chicken in the sauce and serve.

Orange Chicken

My copycat Panda Express Orange Chicken is sticky, sweet and tangy. Succulent chicken pieces with a crispy coating and plenty of that delicious sauce. Ready in 20 minutes too!

Prep: 5min

Total: 20min

Yield: 4

Serving Size: 1 serving

Nutrition Facts: calories 637 kcal, Carbohydrate 43 g, Protein 50 g, Fat 29 g, Saturated Fat 17 g, Cholesterol 256 mg, Sodium 1621 mg, Fiber 1 g, Sugar 18 g, servingSize 1 serving

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup (90g) plain (all purpose) flour
• 1 medium egg
• 1/4 tsp garlic salt
• 1/3 cup + 1tbsp (90ml) cold water
• pinch of salt and pepper
• 8 chicken thigh fillets (skinless and boneless) (chopped into bite-size chunks)
• 2 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch)
• 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil (for frying)
• Juice of 2 large oranges
• Zest of half an orange
• 6 tbsp caster sugar (or superfine sugar)
• 5 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 1 tsp minced ginger
• 1 tsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp cornflour (cornstarch), mixed with 3 tbsp cold water to form a slurry ((optional))
• Boiled rice
• 1 tsp sesame seeds

Instruction:

1. Start by making the batter for the chicken. In a large bowl, add the plain (all purpose) flour, egg, garlic salt, salt, pepper and water and mix together using a whisk until smooth.
2. Place the chopped chicken thighs in a separate bowl and sprinkle on the cornflour (cornstarch). Toss together so the chicken is coated in the cornflour.
3. Add the chicken to the batter, and mix together so the chicken is coated in the batter.
4. Add the oil to a wok or large frying pan (skillet) and heat over a medium-high heat until hot.
5. While the oil is heating, make the orange sauce. In a medium bowl, mix together the orange juice and zest, sugar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and rice vinegar. Put to one side.
6. When the oil is hot, add the chicken to the oil. I find it’s best to work in two or even three batches for the crispiest chicken. Add the chicken in a piece at a time, and cook for 3-4 minutes, turning occasionally with tongs, until golden brown and cooked throughout (*note 1).
7. Once cooked, place the chicken in a bowl lined with kitchen paper while you cook the second batch. You can add a little more oil in if needed, to ensure the chicken is surrounded by oil, but be sure to keep the temperature up so the oil is bubbling and hot.
8. Carefully disposed of any leftover oil from the wok and turn down the heat to medium. Add the orange sauce to the pan, bring to the boil and simmer for a few minutes until slightly thickened.
9. If you want to thicken further, then slowly pour in the cornstarch slurry (1 tbsp cornflour/cornstarch mixed with 3 tbsp cold water) whilst stirring (*note 2).
10. Add the chicken back to the wok and carefully toss together until the chicken is coated in the sauce. I find the best way to do this is to slide a spatula underneath the chicken, lift it up and turn it over – do this repeatedly until all the chicken is coated.
11. Serve the chicken over boiled rice, topped with a sprinkling of sesame seeds.

The Perfect Orange Chicken Recipe | And ITS EASY!