Chinese orange chicken made with crispy fried chicken covered in an authentic orange sauce. This recipe is better than any take-out you will ever order.
Call me crazy, but every time I get Chinese food I order the same thing—orange chicken! Something about the citrus and crispy chicken makes my mouth water just thinking about it. Since we can’t go out much, I wanted to bring orange chicken to my house without even leaving the kitchen.
This Chinese Orange Chicken is made with boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces, dredged, and then fried until golden and crispy. The orange sauce is seriously so easy and tastes amazing! It is a sweet orange sauce made with orange juice, vinegar, garlic, sugar, soy sauce, ginger, red chili flakes, and orange zest. It is both sweet and spicy and the perfect combination if flavors.
SIMPLE SAUCE ORANGE SAUCE
Did you know that a good orange chicken recipe uses actual orange juice. If you’ve read before, we have been adding orange juice to our morning routine. Well, it was time to take that routine and spread across our day. By adding it to an actual meal, I figured the kids would have no idea they were getting vitamins while also enjoying a delicious dinner.
To make your homemade orange sauce, place orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and red chili flakes in a small pot and cook over medium-high heat. Add cornstarch and water and cook until thickened. Stir in orange zest.
ORANGE CHICKEN IS EASY!
To make it, start with boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs. Cut into bite-size pieces. Dredge the chicken in whisked eggs and cornstarch/flour mixture until nicely coated.
Heat up oil in a heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, (around 350 degrees) cook the chicken in batches for about two minutes until light golden brown. Repeat with remaining chicken. Remove it from oil and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.
Toss fried chicken with the sweet orange chicken and top with grated orange zest and red pepper flakes for extra spice. Serve immediately.
FROM ORANGE JUICE TO ORANGE CHICKEN
Simple Chinese Orange Chicken – Chinese orange chicken made with crispy fried chicken covered in an authentic orange sauce. This recipe is better than any take-out you will ever order. 4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts cut into bite-size pieces.
Ingredients
- 3 Eggs whisked
- 1/3 cup Cornstarch
- 1/3 cup Flour
- Oil for frying
- Orange Chicken Sauce:
- 1 cup Orange Juice
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar or White Vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
- 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
- Garnish:
- Crushed Red Pepper
- Orange Zest
Instructions
- To make orange sauce:
- In a medium pot, add orange juice, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and red chili flakes. Heat for 3 minutes. 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.
- To make chicken: Place flour and cornstarch in a shallow dish or pie plate. Add a pinch of salt. Stir.
- Whisk eggs in shallow dish. Dip chicken pieces in egg mixture and then flour mixture. Place on a plate.
- 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. 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. 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.
Let me know what you think about this recipe and if you’d like to see others in the comments.
